National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2) Guide for SystmOne

How can I calculate the NEWS2 Score?

There are two ways in which the NEWS2 score can be calculated and recorded:

• Manually via the S1 Launcher or by adding the protocol to a template or toolbar ((just hit F12 and search for ‘NEWS’: open the protocol option (blue arrow))

• Automatically when adding patient observations if the NEWS2 Score reaches a threshold of >=5.
  • You can add observations using the template included or with your own/current template.
  • The NEWS2 template can be accessed by searching for ‘NEWS’ in the bottom left corner search bar:

The automatic alert looks to see if the patient has a history of type 2 respiratory failure – if they do, it assumes the patient is on oxygen.  This will lead to a potentially oversensitive trigger in a very small number of patients with type 2 failure who are not on oxygen:

If further observations are required in order to calculate the score, the following prompt appears:

Click Record data to add any outstanding observations via the NEWS2 Template:

The observations must be recorded within 15 minutes of opening the patient record in order for the protocol to work. If a NEWS score is needed after that time, either start a new entry or use the table on the template to calculate the score manually.

The protocol then asks whether the patient was on oxygen when observations recorded:

The NEWS2 score is then calculated and presented for verification before saving into the patient’s record:

The scoring protocol checks to see if the patient has a record of type 2 respiratory failure.  If this is present it uses scale 2.  If it is absent, it uses scale 1.  When the final score is presented, the user is told if the score was calculated assuming T2RF or not, with the option to recalculate the score using the other state.

An entry is then created within the patient’s record: