Deteriorating Patients: an Introduction for Reception Staff

Reception staff are commonly the first point of contact for people with acute health needs.

Occasionally those people will require prompt action or escalation to a doctor or other clinically trained practitioner.

This session supports the work undertaken by Hartlepool and Stockton GP Federation to support reception staff in directing patients to timely care when presenting with potentially serious symptoms. Prompt recognition of sepsis and rapid intervention will help reduce the number of deaths occurring annually.

This session has been developed to help receptionists working in community-based care settings to recognise the signs of potentially life-threatening conditions and escalate patients appropriately. Receptionists are often the first to engage with a patient with acute health needs and this session aims to provide information and guidance in initial patient assessment.