triagista

Triagista is a term used in several Romance-language contexts to denote a person who performs triage, the process of sorting patients or tasks by urgency to allocate limited resources. In medical settings, a triagista is typically a frontline clinician or trained staff member responsible for rapid assessment of arriving patients, determining urgency, initiating initial stabilization, and directing patients to appropriate care pathways.

In disaster relief and mass casualty incidents, the triagista coordinates with other responders to categorize casualties (for example as immediate, delayed, minor, or expectant) and to guide prioritization under resource constraints. The exact duties vary by country and institution but generally include collecting initial information, performing quick vital-sign checks, communicating needs to physicians, and documenting triage decisions.

Etymology and usage: the concept of triage originated in battlefield medicine; the word triage derives from the French trier “to sort.” In many languages, including Portuguese and Italian, triagista is a standard job title for someone who performs triage; in English, the role is usually described as triage nurse, triage officer, or triage technician.

See also: triage, emergency medicine, START and SALT triage methods, disaster response.