The Royal College of Physicians NEWS scoring system6 has been modified to create the
NZEWS by including single extreme-parameter calling. Rather than relying on an
aggregate scoring system to activate a maximal system response (such as a MET call or
local equivalent) where senior expertise is brought immediately to the bedside, New
Zealand and Australian healthcare systems have additional safeguards in place. Within
NZEWS, it is proposed that extreme brady or tachypnoea (respiratory rate 35
breaths per minute), hypotension (systolic blood pressure