The Health Ministry has submitted for consutation a draft amendment to the regulations on the TOPSOR system in hospital emergency departments. The proposed changes are intended to align technical and organizational requirements with the current operation of the system, standardize the rules of medical segregation according to the current ESI algorithm, and increase the transparency of data on waiting times in the ED.
EDs with new rules for TOPSOR system. Health Ministry draft regulation
Published Feb. 18, 2026 08:31
The draft Regulation of the Minister of Health amending the regulations for the system that manages patient service modes in a hospital emergency department (TOPSOR) aims to adapt the regulations to changes in the operation of the system starting in 2021. The amendment covers both technical and organizational issues, as well as updating the nomenclature used.
One of the key elements of the project is to update the rules for conducting medical segregation. The rules will be aligned with the current Emergency Severity Index (ESI) algorithm, while abandoning the indication of its specific version. This solution is intended to prevent the need for frequent revisions in the event of updates to the triage methodology, and to ensure that the system developers' guidelines are always applied.
The draft also clarifies the responsibilities of TOPSOR administrators and users. Among the new requirements are rules for making security copies of locally processed data, specifying deadlines for submitting monthly reports on the system's operation, and an obligation to ensure two-way integration of TOPSOR with hospitals' IT systems. This is expected to streamline information flow and enhance data security.
The amendment also expands the scope of data made available to the public. In addition to the existing information, data will be available on waiting times for registration and medical segregation, the number of people waiting for these activities, and the total number of patients in the ED at any given time. The change is expected to increase the transparency of emergency department operations and make it easier for patients to see the current situation.
The draft also provides for more flexible references to standards for the collection and exchange of information in health care. Instead of pointing to specific vintages of publications, the regulations will refer to existing standards or standards replacing them, allowing regulations to remain current despite changes in regulations and technical standards.
In addition, the vocabulary used in TOPSOR has been updated to correspond to the current organizational and technological realities of hospital emergency department operations.
Source: RCL
