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Interactions between nurses and patients during triage are crucial if the urgency of patient need is to be assessed accurately. This article reports on the results of a study of emergency nurses’ perspectives and experience of triage in the United States. Findings indicate that triage encounters are multifaceted and that emergency nurses require experience as well as knowledge to make good decisions. Two themes emerged from the study’s findings: the need for nurses to connect with patients and the ability of nurses to ‘read between the lines’. Nurses who connect with patients can take more detailed histories, while those who can read between the lines can identify the salient points and subtle signs from patients. Nurses with these skills can make better triage decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nursing shortage remains problematic, yet research with nurses no longer in clinical practice is scarce. The purpose of this study was to understand the factors influencing the decision of registered nurses (RNs) to leave clinical nursing. A phenomenological research design was chosen to reveal the complex phenomena influencing the RNs' decisions to leave clinical nursing practice. Interviews were conducted with RNs who were no longer practicing clinically.