Clear sepsis guidance could help paramedics save lives
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Clear sepsis guidance could help paramedics save lives

Petra Kendall-Raynor

Deaths halved when treatment starts within an hour of diagnosis

Lives could potentially be saved if paramedics had clear guidelines for giving intravenous antibiotics to patients with suspected sepsis, a study suggests.

Emergency Nurse. 28, 5, 6-6. doi: 10.7748/en.28.5.6.s2

Published: 08 September 2020

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Picture credit: istock

University of Portsmouth paramedic lecturer Patryk Jadzinski interviewed medical directors at five of the UK’s 14 NHS ambulance services about how intravenous antibiotics should be used out of hospital to treat suspected sepsis.

Pre-hospital treatment for sepsis in UK ambulance services ranges from the conservative administration of sodium chloride and oxygen to collecting blood cultures and administering IV antibiotics, according to the study, co-authored with University of Portsmouth head of school Chris Markham.

The speed with which suspected sepsis cases are treated is critical for better patient outcomes, with the study citing research showing that deaths from the condition are halved if treatment starts within an hour of diagnosis.

The research also found there was a drive for early sepsis diagnosis and pre-alerting the receiving hospital.

But without evidence, decision-makers were reluctant to consider a standard UK-wide approach using intravenous antibiotics.

Potential significant benefits

Responses from the medical directors ranged from being cautious about paramedics taking blood and administering intravenous antibiotics to a belief that to do so carried little risk and potential significant benefits.

UK Sepsis Trust chief executive Ron Daniels said: ‘Evidence and experience shows that quick administration of antibiotics increases survival rates, and should a new protocol be introduced enabling paramedics to give antibiotics, we would expect to see a decrease in sepsis deaths.’

See the University of Portsmouth study at tinyurl.com/treating-sepsis-study

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