ED Tracking Sheet Implementation

ED Tracking Sheet Implementation

The purpose of this study is to assess whether implementation of an ED Sepsis Tracking Sheet effects the percentage of goal-directed sepsis criteria met in a tertiary care academic Emergency Department.

Sepsis remains a common cause of morbidity and mortality in the hospital setting. Accurate diagnosis and timely initiation of therapy are important drivers of patient-centered outcomes in sepsis management. Compliance with the core measures listed in the surviving sepsis campaign guidelines has been variable.

An ED-specific Sepsis Tracking Sheet (STS) - a tool for implementing and documenting critical actions in sepsis management - was created at our institution by a team of physicians, nurses, and ED pharmacists. Dedicated ED pharmacists were instructed to fill this sheet within one hour of the sepsis-specific best practice advisory (BPA) being activated in the ED. Core measures associated with the one hour and three hour sepsis bundles were tracked and outcomes were compared pre- and post-implementation of the STS.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Over 18 years old
• Initially evaluated in the DHMC Lebanon Emergency Department
• Activated sepsis BPA upon initial presentation (triage history consistent with infection combined with 2 or more SIRS criteria? Are these the criteria that trigger our sepsis BPA?)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Patients who are transferred to the DHMC Lebanon Emergency Department from another facility
• Patients with absent data regarding one or more of the goal-directed sepsis criteria
• Patients who did not initially meet criteria to trigger the sepsis BPA, but developed sepsis later in their hospital course