Table 1.
Patient Handoffs and Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) Categorized by Illness Severity
| Illness Severitya | Patient Handoffs, n (%) | RRTs, n (%) | Incidence of RRT by Illness Severity, % (n/total) |
| Star | 377 (1.3) | 5 (5.1) | 1.33 (5/377) |
| Watcher | 5309 (18.8) | 35 (35.7) | 0.66 (35/5309) |
| Stable | 22 549 (79.9) | 58 (59.2) | 0.26 (58/22 549) |
| Total | 28 235 | 98 | 0.35 (98/28 235) |
a
Illness severity categories are defined at Baylor College of Medicine as stable, watcher, or star. Stable indicates improving clinical status; do not expect significant interventions overnight. Watcher indicates unsure of illness trajectory; could possibly need intervention overnight. Star indicates the sickest patients at risk of needing higher level of care overnight.