Flex Unit’s Patient Assignment System at a Glance

Color-coded assignments determined by acuity

Level I: Red

Extremely ill patients needing some ICU-level care

• Vital signs every four hours
• Cardiac monitoring as needed
• Charting on critical care flow sheet
• Ventilator support with telemetry
• High-risk status requiring frequent assessment

Level II: Green

Non-telemetry cases that require frequent nursing assessment

• Vital signs every four hours
• Charting on critical care flow sheet
• Ventilator patient (non-telemetry) with vital signs
• Charting every four hours
• Telemetry discontinued by requiring close observation
• High-risk patients requiring frequent assessment

Level III: Blue

Non-telemetry cases that require medical-surgical care

• Vital signs every eight hours
• Charting on medical-surgical flow sheet

Source: Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center, Plainfield, NJ.