Improving Sepsis Metrics Through Tracking and Reporting: A Vital Component in Hospital Programs

Tracking and reporting metrics are essential for hospitals to ensure they are filling identified gaps and meeting the goals of their sepsis-prevention programs. With approximately 1.7 million adults in the U.S. developing sepsis each year, and at least 350,000 dying from it, the need for effective prevention and treatment is crucial.

One way to enable these metrics is by forming an interdisciplinary sepsis core team. Nurse manager Carol Ann Gelderman, MS, explained that through concurrent chart review, the team provides real-time feedback to providers and nurses based on a risk score. This feedback allows for immediate improvements in patient care and treatment.

Gelderman and her team at Northeast Georgia Health System have documented significant improvements in patient outcomes through their tracking and reporting measures. By touching nearly 6,000 patients over a short period, they have reduced door-to-antibiotic time and average length of stay for sepsis patients, resulting in millions of dollars in savings.

This webinar series on the CDC’s Hospital Sepsis Program Core Elements, developed in collaboration with the AMA and CDC’s Project Firstline, offers hospitals a blueprint for building successful sepsis programs. Monitoring sepsis management and finding the origins of fallout cases are key steps in improving sepsis metrics through tracking and reporting.

Experts like Michelle Evans, MSN, from Summa Health System in Akron, Ohio, have seen mortality rates drop below state goals for sepsis patients through improved reporting and data tracking methods. By identifying areas of focus and driving improvements based on data, hospitals can make significant strides in sepsis prevention and treatment.

Overall, tracking and reporting are crucial elements in the fight against sepsis, and hospitals that implement effective metrics can make a real difference in patient outcomes and healthcare costs.