Improving multidisciplinary severe sepsis management using the Sepsis Six .

Area of Science:

• Clinical Medicine
• Critical Care
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Sepsis is a leading cause of hospital admission and mortality in the UK, with over 100,000 admissions and 37,000 deaths annually.
• Effective management of severe sepsis is crucial to reduce patient morbidity and mortality.
• The Sepsis Six protocol offers a standardized approach to sepsis management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of the Sepsis Six protocol on severe sepsis management.
• To assess the effectiveness of promoting teamwork in protocol adherence.
• To measure changes in intensive care unit (ITU) admissions, hospital length of stay, and patient mortality.

Main Methods:

• An audit and re-audit were conducted over two-month periods.
• Clerking notes of patients diagnosed with sepsis were analyzed for severe sepsis.
• Adherence to the Sepsis Six protocol was assessed against national guidelines.

Main Results:

• Protocol adherence improved significantly from 1% to 67% (p<0.0001).
• ITU admissions decreased from 19% to 7%, with a reduction in mortality from 6% to 0%.
• Average hospital length of stay reduced from 10 to 7 days (p<0.0001).

Conclusions:

• Implementing the Sepsis Six protocol, driven by teamwork, dramatically improved severe sepsis management.
• Updated trust-wide protocols led to decreased hospital morbidity and mortality.
• This study demonstrates the clinical and economic benefits of standardized sepsis care pathways.