Every year, 40,000 children are hospitalized for sepsis in the U.S. Almost 5,000 children die from sepsis.
While research has advanced our understanding of sepsis, it remains a leading cause of death in hospitalized children since it can be difficult to diagnose and effective recognition requires high levels of coordination.
For seven years, Children’s Hospital Association (CHA) worked with hospitals in the Improving Pediatric Sepsis Outcomes (IPSO) quality improvement collaborative. IPSO was a national collaborative that aimed to reduce sepsis-attributable mortality and improve survivor outcomes through early identification and timely treatment. IPSO’s evidence-based care bundles, including utilization of recognition processes and timely administration of fluids and antibiotics, are associated with lower sepsis-attributable mortality.
The formal collaboration came to an end in 2023, but CHA continues to support our children’s hospitals’ sepsis data tracking and benchmarking needs. Sepsis data is now tracked in our Pediatric Health Information Systems (PHIS) and Inpatient Essentials (IE).
Member hospitals can also learn about continuing efforts to improve sepsis outcomes in our Sepsis Community of Practice. The community offers sepsis resources, an anytime discussion board, and regular virtual meetings for participants. All CHA members are welcome to join.
Please reach out to analytics@childrenshospitals.org with questions.
