Martha's Rule now in all A&Es

The NHS is expanding Martha's Rule to every emergency department in England, starting now and completing by March 2028. Patients and families can call a dedicated number to request an urgent review if they're worried about deteriorating care.

Named after Martha Mills

Martha Mills died aged 13 at King's College Hospital in London in 2021 from sepsis after a bike accident. A coroner later ruled she would probably have survived if transferred to intensive care earlier, prompting her parents to create this rule.

How the rule works

Patients, families, and staff can call a dedicated phone number to trigger an urgent review if a patient's condition is worsening and concerns aren't being heard. Staff can also request a review from a different team if they're worried appropriate action isn't being taken.

Pilot results show impact

During an eight-month trial at seven trusts, 69 calls were made to Martha's Rule phone numbers. Some led to immediate surgery or intensive care transfers, with thousands more calls made across adult and children's wards.

“Early testing has shown that Martha's Rule can work well in busy A&Es”

Already in wards, spreading UK-wide

Martha's Rule is already rolled out across all inpatient wards in England. Scotland is beginning to use it, Northern Ireland is considering it, and Wales has a similar scheme called Call4Concern.