introduction
“ALERT — watchful, a danger warning, a condition of preparedness.” Chambers English Dictionary 2001
The multiprofessional ALERT® (Acute Life–threatening Events — Recognition and Treatment) course was
developed in response to awareness that many cardiac arrests, intensive care unit (ICU) admissions and
in-hospital deaths might be preventable with better care. The course is intended to teach healthcare staff
how to anticipate, recognise and prevent critical illness at an early stage, thereby preventing unnecessary
cardiac arrest and improving the quality of care for those patients who may subsequently require
admission to a critical care facility. It aims to achieve these goals by focusing training on the aspects of
acute illness that often cause anxiety to medical and nursing staff treating critically ill patients, and by
highlighting areas for improving performance.
The ALERT® course is based on that of several other life–support training programmes (e.g. ALS, ATLS, APLS and CCrISP). Like these, it uses a structured and prioritised system of patient assessment and management to assist doctors and nurses to perform to a safe standard, even when faced with unfamiliar clinical situations. In order to promote uniformity, the ALERT® course has adopted the fundamental assessment and management components of the above courses. This common approach has the advantage that knowledge, skills and attitudes learnt on an ALERT® course can be integrated with the techniques and methods learnt on other life support courses. The ALERT® manual includes the core material necessary for student participation in the course.