The words to use
- Martha's Rule
- An NHS England patient safety programme: daily check-ins, plus a route for staff, patients and families to request a rapid review by a different team. Named after Martha Mills.
- Escalation
- Raising a concern with someone more senior, or with another team, so that they act. Good escalation is clear, specific and urgent: who, what, and what you need.
- Acute deterioration
- A patient becoming seriously unwell over hours or days. It was the subject of 5,660 of the 19,177 Martha's Rule calls, September 2024 to July 2026.
- Rapid review
- An urgent assessment by clinicians outside the treating team. Martha's Rule lets staff, patients, families and carers request one.
