PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Clifford Hughes
AU  - Charles Pain
AU  - Jeffrey Braithwaite
AU  - Kenneth Hillman
TI  - ‘Between the flags’: implementing a rapid response system at scale
AID  - 10.1136/bmjqs-2014-002845
DP  - 2014 Sep 01
TA  - BMJ Quality & Safety
PG  - 714--717
VI  - 23
IP  - 9
4099  - http://qualitysafety.bmj.com/content/23/9/714.short
4100  - http://qualitysafety.bmj.com/content/23/9/714.full
SO  - BMJ Qual Saf2014 Sep 01; 23
AB  - While many hospitals are implementing rapid response systems (RRSs) to attend to deteriorating patients in a systematic way, there is little documented evidence on system-wide approaches to adopting RRSs. Here, we report on an initiative which enrolled 220 hospitals in New South Wales, Australia. The ‘between the flags’ approach was modelled on Australia's surf lifesaving experience, where qualified lifesavers perform thousands of rescues each year. Patients in hospitals who are identified as being ‘between the flags’ are given special attention, just like beach goers.