Objective To construct an in‑hospital transport grading scheme for postoperative patients based on the calibrated Modified Early Warning Score (MEWS) system and explore its clinical application effect. Methods A total of 140 patients who underwent postoperative transport in the operating room of the First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University from October 2020 to December 2020 were selected. According to the sequence of entry into the operating room, they were divided into two groups (n=70): a control group (entry into the operating room from 1 October, 2020 to 15 November, 2020) and an experimental group (entry into the operating room from 16 November, 2020 to 31 December, 2020). Patients in the control group were transported according to the traditional transport method, while those in the experimental group were subjected to in‑hospital transport grading scheme based on the calibrated MEWS. Both groups were compared for the time and incidence of adverse events of transport. Results The time of transferring patients to the ward and intensive care unit (ICU) was shorter in the test group than that in the control group (P<0.05). The incidence of adverse events such as changes in disease, technical adverse event and the total incidence of adverse events during the transfer were lower in the test group than those in the control group (P<0.05). Conclusions Establishment of a grading scheme for postoperative in-hospital transport based on calibrated MEWS for clinical practice can reduce the incidence of adverse transport events and reduce transport time.