Head straight to the emergency triage desk — don’t wait in line at registration

No cost at all. Just walk a few extra steps to find the triage desk and describe the most life‑threatening symptom in one sentence.

According to the 2024 quality‑control guidelines for emergency medicine issued by China’s National Health Commission, patients must be classified into four levels based on severity. Level I denotes critically ill patients who require immediate treatment; Level II covers severely ill patients whose assessment and care happen simultaneously. Level III includes urgent patients needing prompt diagnosis and treatment, while Level IV comprises non‑urgent or semi‑urgent cases that are seen in regular order. Triage is the process by which trained staff evaluate each patient at entry and assign a priority rank. Beijing’s implementation rules specify response times for each level: Level I patients must be evaluated and treated at once, often in a resuscitation room; Level II patients need vital‑sign monitoring and treatment within ten minutes, also in a resuscitation room; Level III patients are seen before Level IV cases, but if wait time exceeds 30 minutes they must be re‑evaluated; Level IV patients wait in regular sequence, though any change in condition can trigger a reassessment after four hours. The principle of giving priority to critically ill patients must be strictly observed, and a dedicated triage area must be clearly marked at every ER entrance (the four‑level framework is national, while the response times are specific to Beijing).

国家卫生健康委办公厅 (2024). 关于印发急诊医学等 6 个专业医疗质量控制指标（2024 年版）的通知（国卫办医政函〔2024〕150 号）附件 1，指标四「急诊分级分诊执行率」. https://www.gov.cn/zhengce/zhengceku/202405/content_6951260.htm；北京市卫生健康委员会 (2019). 北京市加强急诊预检分诊分级工作方案及附件《北京市医院急诊预检分诊分级标准（试行）》：「坚持急危重症优先就诊原则。按照患者病情的严重程度，遵循从重到轻、从病情迅速变化到相对稳定的原则，合理安排患者就诊顺序。」「在急诊科入口的显著位置，设置急诊预检分诊区域」. http://wjw.beijing.gov.cn/zwgk_20040/ylws/201912/t20191216_1242338.html

The four‑level system is standardized nationwide; exact treatment intervals are set locally, and Beijing’s version can be verified verbatim. Triage relies on measurable indicators such as heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, and specific symptoms — not on how much pain a patient reports. For Level I, key criteria include a heart rate above 180 bpm or below 40 bpm, systolic blood pressure under 70 mmHg, oxygen saturation below 80 %, shock, confirmed myocardial infarction, or acute loss of consciousness. If you feel your level was assigned incorrectly, describe the most dangerous symptom in detail. Should your condition worsen while waiting, return to the triage desk for re‑evaluation. In truly critical situations, calling emergency services (120) is faster than self‑transport; pre‑hospital staff apply the same criteria to assign an initial level and alert the hospital in advance (see Section 13).