Characteristics of the three levels of acuity at the Aga Khan University Hospital
| Characteristics of care | Low-level acuity | Intermediate-level acuity | High-level acuity |
| Emergency severity illness score | Stable patients* (P3) | Unstable and critical patient† (P2) | Critical and life-threatening patient (P1) |
| Vitals monitoring | Every 6 hours | Continuous monitoring | Continuous monitoring |
| Nurse-to-patient ratio | 1:5 | 1:3–4 | 1:1 |
| Doctor-to-patient ratio | 1:8 | 1:4 | 1:3 |
| Non-invasive ventilation available | No | Yes | Yes |
| Invasive ventilation available | No | No | Yes |
| Cost in US$/day | 154 | 193 | 290 |
*Requiring hospital admission or oxygen.
†If unstable patients remain critical in the emergency room, they were initially admitted to high acuity.