I learned to give good Triage reports fairly quickly because at the ER we feed to most often, the nurse will start taking to the patient if they dont like your report. It is also worth noting how the facility uses the information-- different hospitals note it differently in their software, so you need to give it in a specific order.
I learned, at first, to write it down linearly on a notecard, with all the information in one place. It sounds something like this.
Good Morning. Here we have Mr. John Smith, age XX, MRN/SSN 123-45-6789, coming from home complaining of abd pain. He ate a large lunch a few hours ago. The discomfort started 40 min later. Denies CP/SOB. His vitals are stable (they dont need to know details, as my partner is getting a set on the hospital's machine at the same time). Hx of XXXX. He has an allergy to PCN, and is on X, X, X and X meds. We put him on X liters of O2. etc.
Thats all they need to know. The nurse now knows what priority the patient is, and has the important info in the computer.
By the end, you should have gotten through SAMPLE and OPQRST.
remember, you are your patient's advocate, and the immediate treatment they get is dependent on the quality, completeness, and conciseness of your report.
