Nurse Panic Button

Heart pounding, blanking on the steps? Tap what's happening and get a calm, nurse-focused checklist — what to assess first, what vitals and labs to grab, what to have ready before you call the provider, what to do, and what not to forget to chart. Every checklist is cited to published clinical guidelines.

This is a memory aid — not a replacement for getting help. If your patient looks unstable, or your gut says something is wrong, call for help / activate your rapid response first, then use this. No pulse or not breathing? Start CPR and call a code. Always follow your own assessment and your facility's protocols.

Something else? Describe it (de-identified)

Built-in checklists open instantly and work offline. For anything not on the list, an optional AI builds one (requires the box below).

I understand this is an educational aid, not clinical advice, that I've kept it de-identified, and that I'll use my own nursing judgment and my facility's protocols. Terms.

Building your checklist…

Server warming up — the first request after a quiet spell can take 30–60s. Hang tight.

Keep it de-identified. Don't type patient names, MRNs, DOBs, room numbers, or ages — describe the situation generically. Built-in checklists never leave your device. If you use the optional AI, we strip obvious PHI server-side as a safety net, but the responsibility is yours. See our HIPAA alignment notes.

Tap a situation

How this works — and how it's kept evidence-based

The built-in checklists are general, RN-scope nursing-process frameworks (primary survey / ABCs, focused assessment, SBAR before calling the provider, and standard escalation) — and each one is grounded in published clinical practice guidelines, shown in a numbered Sources panel on every checklist with inline [n] markers on the specific standards (a MAP target, the BE-FAST stroke approach, the ~5-minute status-epilepticus threshold, epinephrine as first-line for anaphylaxis, the critical-value reporting rule). Every list is in do-first priority order — item 1 is what you do or check first, ordered by life-safety (Airway → Breathing → Circulation → neuro → everything else), which is why the items are numbered. The checklists are intentionally generic: they never assume a diagnosis, never invent vital signs or lab values, and never give medication doses or orders — those belong to your provider and your facility's protocols. The optional AI fallback is held to the same bar: its steps follow the same priority ordering, it may cite only from a fixed, server-side approved-guideline list (it cannot invent a source, author, year, or link), and when your description is ambiguous (say, "pulling out their tube" without naming the tube) it is instructed never to guess — it leads with the most dangerous possibility (airway first), tells you to identify the device, and covers the major branches in descending order of danger. For arrest and ACLS/BLS/PALS algorithms, use the Code Blue tool; this Panic Button is for the broader "my patient just changed and I need to organize my next two minutes" moment.

Evidence base — guidelines behind these checklists

Each checklist links the specific guidelines it draws on. Books/standards cited by name (e.g., Lippincott Manual of Nursing Practice; The Joint Commission pain standards) are real, peer-recognized references; where a stable public link exists it is provided.

Educational use only. The BrainSheets Panic Button does not diagnose, does not write orders, and is not a substitute for your clinical judgment, your provider, your rapid-response team, or your facility's policies and protocols. In an emergency, get help first. By using this tool you agree to our Terms of Service.