A study, published in Clinical Infectious Diseases, examines the impact of an infectious disease team on the early management of severe sepsis/septic shock in an emergency department.
Researchers conducted the study at a general ED. Prior to the implementation of an ID team (June 2013–July 2014), all consecutive adult patients with severe sepsis/septic shock were managed according to the standard of care. Post-implementation (August 2014–October 2015), all severe sepsis/septic shock patients were managed with a dedicated ID team performing a bedside patient evaluation within one hour of arrival at the ED.
The first phase included 195 patients and the second phase included 187 patients.
The study shows overall compliance with the Surviving Sepsis Campaign bundle improved from 4.6 percent in the pre-implementation phase to 32 percent in the post-implementation phase.
Additionally, appropriateness of initial antibiotic therapy improved from 30 percent to 79 percent from the pre-phase to the post-phase.
More articles on healthcare quality:
East Jefferson General Hospital ranked top hospital in Louisiana for patient safety
PSMF names 3 institutions that saved the most lives from preventable deaths 2017
3 ways hospitals can reduce unnecessary lab testing