Achieving SEP-1 Compliance: Common Pitfalls and Pearls from the Emergency Department

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has recently tied the Severe Sepsis and Septic Shock Early Management Bundle (SEP-1) compliance to financial incentives, increasing pressure on hospital performance. We aim to review the mechanics of SEP-1 and provide a focused guide for best practices to improve compliance from the perspective of a US-based community emergency department. SEP-1 quality improvement initiatives may benefit from focusing on common failure points. Key strategies include multidisciplinary engagement, staff education, workflow changes, and electronic health record optimization. Implementing such programs may improve performance on this increasingly important metric.