J Adv Nurs. 2020;00:1–11. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/jan | 1 © 2020 John Wiley & Sons Ltd 1 | INTRODUCTION Emergency Department (ED) triage is the process of quickly sorting and prioritising arriving patients to initiate diagnostic procedures and treatment (Fernandes et al., 2005). It is the first significant interaction between patients and ED professionals. If patients’ urgency levels are underestimated (undertriage), they are at risk for health deterioration while awaiting treatment. Conversely, overestimates (overtriage) also have to be avoided: resources are scarce and should only be used where needed. One approach to Received: 14 May 2020 | Revised: 28 September 2020 | Accepted: 30 October 2020 DOI: 10.1111/jan.14675 ORIGINAL RESEARCH: EMPIRICAL RESEARCH – QUALITATIVE The challenge of interprofessional collaboration in emergency department team triage – An interpretive description Thomas Dreher-Hummel 1 | Christian H. Nickel 1 | Dunja Nicca 2 | Florian F. Grossmann 3 1 Emergency Department, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland 2 Department of Public Health, Institute of Nursing Science, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland 3 Department of Medicine, Division of Nursing, Emergency Department, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland Correspondence Florian F. Grossmann, Department of Medicine, Division of Nursing and Emergency Department, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland. Email: florian.grossmann@usb.ch Funding information Professional language editing was funded by the scientific fund of the University Hospital Basel. Further funding was not necessary. Abstract Aims: To explore emergency nurses’ and physicians’ experience of collaboration and collective decision-making when triaging older Emergency Department patients within the interprofessional team triage system. Design: Qualitative. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven nurses and five physicians. Transcripts were analysed via Interpretive Description between September 2016–May 2017. Results: ‘Negotiating collaboration’ was developed as the main theme. Three sub- themes influenced the negotiation process: Participants described divergent opin- ions on how an optimal triage system should work (‘preferences for triage systems’); they had conflicting perceptions of each profession's role (‘role perceptions’); and they expressed different coping strategies regarding ‘perceived time pressure’. The compatibility of participants’ views on these sub-themes determined whether the nurse and physician were able to successfully negotiate their collaboration. These themes became more evident when the team triaged older ED patients. Conclusion: Improving interprofessional team triage requires working with the in- volved nurses’ and physicians’ values and beliefs. The strengths of both professions need to be considered and a flexible approach to collaboration established according to the patients’ situations. Impact: Emergency Department leaders need to consider nurses’ and physicians’ val- ues and beliefs to promote interprofessional collaboration in team triage. KEYWORDS emergency department, emergency medicine, emergency nursing, interpretive description, interprofessional, nurses, older adults, physicians, teamwork, triage