Concept explainer
Critical results
Explains how a critical result reaches a responsible clinician, the acknowledgement it requires, and how the record captures that handoff.
A critical result carries weight only once it reaches the person who can act on it. This page explains how a critical result reaches a responsible clinician, the acknowledgement it requires, and how the record captures that handoff.
When a result is critical
A result records its value on the form attached to the order, and where that value falls in a critical range, the result carries a critical flag as data. The flag rides on the result in the record, so any reader of the result sees it marked.
The flag is a fact on the result rather than a separate note, so it stays with the value through verification and through any later correction.
Reaching a responsible clinician
A critical flag raises an alert. Sentinel holds the alert in its ledger and hands delivery to Raven, which sends it over the channel the recipient has agreed. The alert reaches the clinician responsible for the patient, drawn from the care relationship and the staff on shift.
The acknowledgement it requires
The alert asks the clinician to acknowledge that they have seen it. Sentinel tracks each alert as raised, seen and acknowledged, so a critical result that awaits a response stays visible.
Where an alert waits unacknowledged, Sentinel escalates it up a defined chain over time, so the result reaches a second responsible person rather than resting with one. The escalation and each acknowledgement are held in the alert ledger.
How the record captures the handoff
The handoff leaves a full account. The record holds who the alert reached, the channel it went over, the moment it was delivered, and the acknowledgement that closed it. A reviewer reconstructs the path of a critical result from the patient's record and the alert ledger together.
| Field | What it records |
|---|---|
| Notified | The person the alert reached |
| Channel | The channel the message went over |
| Delivered | The moment the alert was delivered |
| Acknowledged | The person who acknowledged and the moment they did |
| Escalation | The chain the alert climbed while it waited |
Verified by a second person
A result is verified before it is trusted as final. The person who verifies a result differs from the person who recorded it, whether the value was entered by hand or received from an external system. This second check sits alongside the alerting path, so a critical value is both acted upon and confirmed.
A correction keeps the prior result
A corrected result lands as a new version, with the prior one kept and marked superseded. Where a correction changes whether a value is critical, the new version carries its own flag and raises its own alert, so the handoff follows the corrected value.
Common questions
Who is the responsible clinician for an alert?
The alert reaches the clinician with a current care relationship to the patient, drawn together with the staff on shift, so it lands with someone able to act rather than an empty inbox.
What happens if no one acknowledges the alert?
Sentinel escalates an unacknowledged alert up a defined chain over time, and holds the escalation in its ledger. The result reaches a second responsible person until it is acknowledged.
Does a critical flag change the result value?
The flag is a fact carried alongside the value, drawn from the critical range. It marks the result for attention and stays with it through verification and any correction, while the value itself reads as recorded.
Read when the platform raises an alert and how a clinician records an override in alerting and override.