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Sepsis

Why We Want to Prevent Sepsis

Sepsis, or septicemia, is a life-threatening complication of infection. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), sepsis is the body’s overwhelming and life-threatening response to an infection which can lead to tissue damage, organ failure and death. More than 1.1 million people in the United States were diagnosed with septicemia in 2008, with a mortality rate between 28-50 percent of severe sepsis patients.

Research by the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project and the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality shows that the cost of treating sepsis in the United States in 2013 was nearly $24 billion. Sepsis was among the four most costly conditions and accounted for 6.2 percent of all hospitalization spending that year. Sepsis was one of the few areas of spending growth in healthcare from 2011 to 2013, in comparison to spending reductions or stability of most conditions.

Success Within New Jersey Hospitals

Compared to baseline, New Jersey's hospitals have reduced sepsis by 16 percent, avoiding 3,330 potential cases of sepsis.

This was accomplished in part through hospital participation in collaborative efforts:

New Jersey Sepsis Learning and Action Collaborative

In late 2014, healthcare organizations from around the state came together with the New Jersey Hospital Association with a common goal: to save lives by improving the care of patients with sepsis across New Jersey. Since then, the New Jersey Sepsis Learning and Action Collaborative has grown to be a multi-discipline, dynamic support network for healthcare providers.

View Year One Results

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