Improving vital sign documentation at triage: an emergency department quality improvement project.

Background: Improving the quality and safety of patients seen in an emergency department (ED) has become a priority in Italy. The Tuscan Regional Health Ministry has supported quality improvement projects in several Tuscan EDs in cooperation with Harvard Medical International and Harvard Medical School.

Objective: To improve the triage process, we assessed the completeness of documenting the vital signs of patients seen at triage in the ED of the University Hospital Santa Chiara, Pisa, Italy.