{"id":18636,"date":"2018-03-26T07:14:32","date_gmt":"2018-03-26T12:14:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.kaptest.com\/blog\/prep\/?p=18636"},"modified":"2020-09-11T20:42:09","modified_gmt":"2020-09-11T20:42:09","slug":"ringing-the-alarm-rapid-response-or-code-blue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/nclex\/ringing-the-alarm-rapid-response-or-code-blue\/","title":{"rendered":"Ringing the Alarm: Rapid Response or Code Blue"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sometimes making the split decision to call a rapid response or a code blue for patients in distress can be difficult. Understanding the criteria for each helps nurses differentiate between which alarm to initiate.
\nTo help you better understand the differences between calling a rapid response or a code blue, let\u2019s review the criteria for each.
\n 
\n

Rapid Response<\/h3>
<\/div><\/div><\/div>
\nGoal:<\/strong>\u00a0The\u00a0goal of a\u00a0rapid response\u00a0is to intervene\u00a0before\u00a0the onset of injury, respiratory arrest, or cardiac arrest.
\nInitiated by:<\/strong>\u00a0A rapid response can be initiated by anyone, including family, hospital staff, nursing staff, physicians, and visitors.<\/p>\n

Examples of when to call a rapid response<\/h4>\n
    \n
  • Heart rate over 140\/min or less than 40\/min<\/li>\n
  • Respiratory rate over 28\/min or less than 8\/min<\/li>\n
  • Systolic blood pressure greater than 180 mmHg or less than 90 mmHg<\/li>\n
  • Oxygen saturation less than 90% despite O2 supplementation, deep breathing and coughing efforts, etc.<\/li>\n
  • Acute change in mental status<\/li>\n
  • Urine output less than 50 cc over 4 hours<\/li>\n
  • Staff, family, or visitor has significant concern about the patient\u2019s condition<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    The members of a rapid response team may include:<\/h4>\n
      \n
    • Critical Care Nurse<\/li>\n
    • Respiratory Therapist<\/li>\n
    • Primary RN<\/li>\n
    • Critical Care Physician<\/li>\n
    • Nursing Supervisor<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Rapid response process<\/h4>\n
        \n
      • Detection<\/li>\n
      • Activation<\/li>\n
      • Response, Assessment, Intervention and Stabilization<\/li>\n
      • Disposition<\/li>\n
      • Evaluation<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        Code Blue<\/h3>
        <\/div><\/div><\/div>
        \nGoal:<\/strong>\u00a0The goal of a\u00a0code blue\u00a0is to perform resuscitation efforts\u00a0after\u00a0a person has stopped breathing, or after a person\u2019s heart has stopped beating.
        \nInitiated by:<\/strong>\u00a0A code blue should be\u00a0initiated by anyone with CPR certification\u00a0or someone that can verify if a person has stopped breathing, or has no pulse.<\/p>\n

        Examples of when to call a code blue:<\/h4>\n
          \n
        • Person has stopped breathing<\/li>\n
        • Person has no pulse<\/li>\n
        • Unable to determine if the person has a pulse or if they are breathing, and is unresponsive<\/li>\n
        • Unsure of what to do, and are very concerned for the life of the person<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          The members of a code blue team may include:<\/h4>\n
            \n
          • Code Team Leader<\/li>\n
          • Critical Care RN<\/li>\n
          • Respiratory Therapist<\/li>\n
          • Primary RN<\/li>\n
          • Critical Care Physician<\/li>\n
          • Critical Care Resident<\/li>\n
          • Recorder<\/li>\n
          • Patient Care Tech or Nursing Assistant<\/li>\n
          • Runner<\/li>\n
          • Security<\/li>\n
          • Nursing Supervisor<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

            Code blue process<\/h4>\n
              \n
            • Detection<\/li>\n
            • Activation<\/li>\n
            • Response, Assessment, Intervention and Stabilization<\/li>\n
            • Disposition<\/li>\n
            • Evaluation<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

              Similarities and Differences<\/h3>
              <\/div><\/div><\/div>
              \nAs you can see, a rapid response and a code blue are similar in that they alert a team of highly trained clinicians to respond to a medical emergency. The clear difference is that a rapid response is for the prevention of serious injury, cardiac arrest, and respiratory arrest, and a code blue is called for a person who has stopped breathing, or who does not have a heart beat, with the goal of resuscitation.
              \nNow that you know the clear difference between calling a rapid response and a code blue, we are confident that you will do what\u2019s best for your patients in distress.
              \n
              \t\t\t

              <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div>
              \n

              <\/span><\/span><\/div><\/p>\n
              \n
              \n
              \n

              Damion is a nurse education consultant and adjunct nursing professor in Baltimore, Maryland. He enjoys teaching a variety of healthcare courses, including: Nursing, Certified Nursing Assistant, Geriatric Nursing Assistant, Certified Patient Care Technician, IV Therapy, Phlebotomy, Certified Medicine Aide, and Nurse Refresher. His passion for enhancing the nursing profession has led him to become an active nurse blogger, author for nursing continuing education, and a private tutor. Damion graduated from the Community College of Baltimore County in 2010, and then earned a master’s degree in nursing education from Walden University in 2014. In Damion\u2019s free time, he enjoys writing, gardening, cooking, traveling, and spending time with family and friends.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

              <\/div><\/div>
              DAMION JENKINS<\/strong><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/section><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

              Sometimes making the split decision to call a rapid response or a code blue for patients in distress can be difficult. Understanding the criteria for each helps nurses differentiate between which alarm to initiate. To help you better understand the differences between calling a rapid response or a code blue, let\u2019s review the criteria for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":26929,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[97],"tags":[125],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18636"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18636"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18636\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35724,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18636\/revisions\/35724"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26929"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18636"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18636"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18636"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}