revised
6/30/2017

History- ESI Milestones

  • 1998
    Emergency physicians Richard Wuerz and David Eitel developed the original ESI concept and initiated pilot testing.
  • 1999-
    Pilot testing of the ESI completed- results promising. Drs. Wuerz and Eitel brought together a number of emergency professionals interested in triage and further refined the algorithm.
  • May 1999-
    Initial ESI implementation at the University of North Carolina Hospitals in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. Post-implementation and refinement study at UNC and Brigham and Women’s Hospitals.
  • 1999-2001
    Refinement and implementation of the ESI in 5 additional hospitals. AHRQ-funded study of ESI reliability and validity in 7 emergency departments in 3 states.
  • 2003
    ESI Version 3 released. ESI Handbook first published by the Emergency Nurses Association.
  • 2005
    High acuity criteria revised and ESI Version 4 released. AHRQ published revised handbook, ESI Version 4 Implementation Handbook and training DVDs.
  • 2006-2009
    Evaluation of ESI reliability and validity for pediatric triage in 7 emergency departments in 3 states.
  • 2010
    ESI web course released.