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Nursing vocabulary · Emergencies and the Deteriorating Patient

Escalate

Meaning in nursing, with examples

/ˈɛskəleɪt/verbCommon term

In nursing, escalate means: To pass a concern about a patient to a more senior or specialist person, such as the nurse in charge or a doctor, so that they can act on it.

In Turkish: üst kademeye bildirmek, haber vermek, durumu iletmek

How it is used

Very common in UK and Australian nursing: 'escalate to the doctor', 'escalate concerns', 'escalation plan'. The notes should say who it was escalated to, when and what was agreed. In general English 'escalate' also means to become bigger or worse: 'The argument escalated.'

Example sentences

  1. His early warning score is 7, so I escalated to the registrar straight away.

  2. If you're worried about a patient, escalate it, even if you're not sure what's wrong.

Common collocations

  • escalate to the doctor
  • escalate concerns
  • escalation plan
  • escalate care
  • deteriorateTo become worse, especially when a patient's condition or vital signs change in a way that shows they are becoming more unwell.
  • early warning scoreA score calculated from a patient's vital signs and level of consciousness that helps staff notice early that a patient is becoming seriously ill.
  • SBARA structured way of passing on information about a patient: Situation, Background, Assessment and Recommendation.
  • charge nurseThe nurse who leads a ward or unit during a shift: organising staff, allocating patients and dealing with problems and emergencies.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Emergencies and the Deteriorating Patient

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.