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Starting Monday, March 2 at 7:00 am Adult Rapid Response calls at UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill will no longer be announced overhead. Hospital operators will be notifying Adult Rapid Response team members of emergent situations by both Vocera and pager.


Starting Monday, March 2 at 7:00 am Adult Rapid Response calls at UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill will no longer be announced overhead. Hospital operators will be notifying Adult Rapid Response team members of emergent situations by both Vocera and pager. This change in practice will result in a quieter environment and will decrease the anxiety that patients and families experience when hearing overhead emergency calls. Adult Rapid Response – Team 2 will continue to be communicated overhead for supporting emergent teams. We have already successfully transitioned Code Medic, Behavioral Response and Adult Code Blue Teams to this process.

Some important things to consider:

  • When calling the operator for an Adult Rapid Response, the calling unit needs to also page the primary team provider to respond for primary care. It is the unit’s responsibility to notify the primary team.

  • The designated calling areas (Inpatient, Cath Lab, and Infusion Center) will continue to call for an Adult Rapid Response by dialing 4-4111 or “call emergency” via Vocera

  • Even though you will not ‘hear’ the call overhead, the Rapid Response team will be notified & will respond.

  • The operator will call back on the phone line used to call in the emergency at the 3-minute mark. If the team has not arrived yet, they will make an overhead announcement.

  • Your team needs to have a process for notifying unit staff when there is an emergency on the unit.

  • If the Vocera system OR paging system goes down, the overhead paging system will be utilized to call Rapid Response and other medical code events.

  • All Pediatric code blues and Pediatric rapid response calls will continue to be announced overhead, but will eventually transition to this process.

We look forward to continuing our excellent patient care while providing a more peaceful, healing environment.