Integration of recognition, diagnostic, and treatment strategies between prehospital emergency medical services and hospital emergency departments in the management of patients with acute sepsis and septic shock

Sepsis and its manifestation as a shock state in “septic shock” have long caused medical issues and death worldwide. The disease requires quick identification, diagnosis, and intervention with very high mortality rates prevalent otherwise. Historically this has been due to limited awareness of the disease and misclassification of its prevalence, severity, and incidence. Luckily in the past decade there has been increased interest and therefore resources devoted towards improving care and further understanding a disease that is one of the leading causes of mortality in hospitals worldwide. Over the past handful of years novel interventions and diagnostic techniques have become available. Unfortunately, in many cases these new discoveries have not yet trickled down to many of the providers on the frontline and a large amount of variation in care exists across the country. Because of the time sensitivity of sepsis, it is imperative that individuals working in the areas of healthcare who first come in contact with these patients have a clear understanding of the newest advances and resources available. In this thesis the goal is to first analyze the current protocols and standards of care for sepsis and then secondly consider new developments available both in the hospital and in prehospital emergency medical services (EMS). From the current information, strategies and protocols based on improvement of patient outcomes, can be streamlined and optimized moving forward. As predicted, there is currently an incredibly large amount of variation and knowledge on the subject with some areas implementing very progressive protocols while others still lack a sepsis protocol all together. In general, the current consensus in the field is that rapid identification and initiation of treatment is the most important component to long term survival. Improvement of outcomes therefore relies on standardization of protocols with incorporation of education components for healthcare providers. This aims to raise awareness and encourage utilization of the newest information and suggestions available. Increased interdisciplinary cooperation between prehospital providers in EMS and care providers in the hospital can also lead to improvement of recognition and treatment times for these patients. Future considerations were also examined that may potentially be applicable moving forward to improve these standards even further. There is a much opportunity available in each of these areas currently and progress is key to improving outcomes