In this episode, Look, Listen and Act, Tony Jermy and colleagues take a pragmatic look at the ABCDE approach to physiological assessment in perioperative practice. Rather than revisiting the theory in detail, the discussion focuses on how ABCDE is actually used in real clinical environments, drawing on lived experiences from theatre and recovery. The conversation explores how practitioners recognise early signs of deterioration, use ABCDE as a structured way of thinking under pressure, and avoid common pitfalls such as fixation or over-reliance on monitoring. While the full step-by-step breakdown is not covered, the episode offers valuable insight into how ABCDE becomes a practical, intuitive tool that supports safe and timely decision-making in everyday practice.