Appendix 3: Patient Acuity Definitions

Note: These definitions match the Model of Clinical Practice of Emergency Medicine and acknowledge that the patient's acuity level is essential for identifying priorities for care in the out-of-hospital setting.

Critical

Emergent

Lower Acuity

Patient presents with symptoms of a life-threatening illness or injury with a high probability of mortality if immediate intervention is not begun to prevent further airway, respiratory, hemodynamic and/or neurologic instability.

 

Patient presents with symptoms of an illness or injury that may progress in severity or result in complications with a high probability for morbidity if treatment is not begun quickly.

Patient presents with symptoms of an illness or injury that have a low probability of progression to more serious disease or development of complications.