Emergency Care Assessment and Treatment (ECAT) is a statewide, co-designed program that aims to standardise nurse-initiated emergency care
The program is being led by the Emergency Care Institute in partnership with NSW Health organisations
| Nurse-initiated protocols and models of care are well established in NSW emergency departments. They safely reduce the time a patient waits for treatment, improve the standard of care and reduce the patient’s length of stay in the emergency department. The ECAT program aims to provide an improved experience for patients and increase staff satisfaction through supporting metropolitan and rural hospitals to provide consistent care across NSW. The ECAT resources are now availble from the ECAT webpage. Policy Directive The ECAT program is supported by the NSW Health The Use of Emergency Care Assessment and Treatment (ECAT) Protocols Policy Directive PD2023_039. Read the policy directive Nurse-initiated protocols The 73 ECAT protocols will guide initiation of nurse-led emergency care.They represent best clinical practice and are based on evidence from existing local guidelines, research studies, and expert consensus. Over 200 clinicians, subject matter experts and the Clinical Excellence Commission were involved in the development of the ECAT protocols. View the protocols Education and Training The ECAT program has worked in collaboration with the Health Education and Training Institute (HETI) and experienced emergency nurses to develop the NSW Health Emergency Nursing Capability Framework, two education modules, and the NSW Health ECAT Education and Recognition of Prior Learning Guide. These resources support NSW Health’s transition to safely and confidently using the ECAT protocols. Access the education materials Implementation resources The ECAT program has worked in collaboration with the ACI System Transformation, Enablement and Patient Partnerships Implementation team, experienced emergency nurses and LHD/SHN ECAT Leads to plan for and develop statewide implementation resources and support. Review the implementation resources |