Objective To optimize the in-hospital emergency process and enhance the quality of emergency care. Methods A total of 176 patients requiring emergency care in public areas of a hospital were chronologically assigned to a control group (n=88) or an intervention group (n=88).The control group received conventional emergency care, while the intervention group received care from an emergency rapid response team led by emergency department nurses following an optimized emergency process.In-hospital emergency response time, rapid response team activation time, mortality, complication rate, and patient and staff satisfaction were compared between the two groups. Results The in-hospital emergency response time and rapid response team activation time in the intervention group were significantly shorter than those in the control group (both P＜0.05).Patient satisfaction and staff satisfaction with emergency teamwork were significantly higher in the intervention group (both P＜0.05).There were no statistically significant differences in mortality or complication rates between the two groups （both P＞0.05）. Conclusion A nurse-led emergency rapid response team, through standardized team building, checklist-based resource management, and optimized emergency process, can significantly shorten the activation time of the rapid response team and improve patient and staff satisfaction.