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Maternity Triage (Good Practice Paper No. 17)

Published: 4 December 2023

Summary

This document highlights the challenges in maternity triage departments and defines their role as emergency portals into maternity units for unscheduled attendances.

This Good Practice Paper is directed at stakeholders responsible for developing and improving maternity services. It presents the recommendations for the operational structure and pathways within maternity triage to improve safety and experience for both women and staff, through prompt standardised initial assessment and the use of symptom-specific algorithms to determine urgency, and outlines the key requirements for successful implementation.

Version history

This is the first edition of this paper.

The review process will commence in 2026, unless otherwise indicated.

Developer declaration of interests

Available upon request.