Total triage: Transforming access in primary care
Format
Virtual
Course overview
- What is total triage? Principles, models, and the case for change in NHS primary care.
- The patient journey under total triage: online, telephone, and face-to-face pathways.
- Roles and responsibilities: reception, care navigation, clinical triage, and GP oversight.
- Using digital tools to support total triage (including Accurx, EMIS, and online consulting).
- Managing demand safely: risk stratification, urgent need recognition, and escalation.
- Overcoming common barriers: staff culture, patient expectations, and equitable access.
Format
- Virtually delivered
- Presentation on real-world total triage implementation case studies
- Scenario-based role exercise: triaging a morning's incoming requests
- Interactive poll: current triage models and perceived barriers across the cohort
- Group discussion: adapting total triage for diverse practice populations.
Learning outcomes
- Understand the principles and benefits of a total triage model in GP practice
- Describe the roles of different team members within a total triage workflow
- Apply triage principles to common presenting scenarios including urgent and vulnerable patients
- Use digital tools to support efficient and safe triage at scale
- Identify and mitigate risks in triage, including safety-netting and escalation pathways.
Who should attend
GPs, practice managers, care navigators, reception leads, PCN clinical directors, digital transformation leads, NHS commissioners.
