Effect of triage training on the knowledge application and practice improvement among the practicing nurses of the emergency departments of the National Referral Hospitals, 2018; a pre-post study in Asmara, Eritrea

BACKGROUND: Triage starts at the front door of the Emergency Department (ED), and repeatedly performed by the responsible duty nurses with the aim of facilitating a timely and appropriate treatment of patients. A triage system called the Orotta Triage System was implemented in the emergency settings of the selected hospitals in 2006, with the emergency nurses trained to triage using the system. Since the introduction, a majority of nurses have been replaced by new untrained nurses. This study was conducted to assess the impact of an educational intervention on the triage nurses knowledge and performance. METHODS: A single group pre-posttest study design was performed in the adult EDs of the National Referral Eritrean Referral Hospitals, from January to July of 2018. All staff members in the ED were involved. Data collection tools utilized were, a self-administered knowledge assessing questionnaire and a practice observation checklist. Analysis was done in SPSS (version 22) using repeated measures ANOVA. Statistical significance level was set at P < 0.05. RESULTS: The mean knowledge scores at Time 1(prior to the intervention), Time 2 (following the intervention) and Time 3 (three month follow up) were 6.23 (SD = 2.29), 10.55 (SD = 1.79), and 9.39(SD = 2.67) respectively. During the pre-intervention phase, only one (3%) nurse was determined to have adequate knowledge. Two days post training (immediate post-intervention), the percentage possessing adequate knowledge increased to 39% but dropped back to 19% three months later. Mean knowledge difference scores (95% CI) of immediate post and pre-intervention (Diff. = 4.32, 1 95%CI: 3.08–5.56), three months later and pre-intervention (Diff. = 3.16, 95%CI: 1.71–4.62) and immediate post and three months later (Diff. = 1.16, 95%CI: 0.12–2.20) were found to be statistically significant. The median score of appropriate triage practice at pre-intervention (Md = 6, IQR = 3) was not significantly different (p = 0.053) from that at post-intervention (Md = 8, IQR = 5). CONCLUSION: The level of triage knowledge and appropriate application was low among the emergency nurses prior to training. The training provided an initial improvement in knowledge, but no significant improvement in triage nursing performance. To optimize ED triage performance, appropriate, timely in-service training is required to ensure new staff are educated and experienced staff have their knowledge and skills refreshed. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12873-022-00755-w.