Christie here from Paige Legal Nurse Consulting. Welcome to my series addressing sepsis and why it is important to your cases.   Over the next few weeks, I’ll be sending you emails to help you understand what Sepsis is and why it is so critical to your cases. Feel free to email me with any questions you may have regarding information I have provided or if you have questions regarding a case you are reviewing with one of these issues.

Over the next few weeks we’ll be reviewing:

• Sepsis screening, and the signs of sepsis
• The 3 stages of infection /sepsis
• Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS),
• Urinary tract infections and sepsis
• Pressure injury wounds and sepsis
• The standards of care for nursing both in hospital and nursing home related to critical nurse thinking and responsibility.

Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS) is not a specific disease but rather a collection of symptoms which only becomes sepsis when an infection is present.   If sepsis remains untreated it can evolve to septic shock, organ failure, and possibly death. Sepsis is a life-threatening condition that occurs when the body’s response to infection causes organ injury. According to the CDC, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 1.7 million adults in the United States every year are affected by sepsis. It is a contributing factor to as many as one-third of all hospital deaths.

Early recognition is crucial to halt sepsis progression, improve outcomes and decrease mortality rates. Two of the most common diagnoses that lead to sepsis include urinary tract infections and pressure injury wounds.

SIRS is not a specific disease but rather a collection of symptoms resulting from an infection. Sepsis evolves over time with worsening characteristics as the resident/patient continues to decline and decompensate. There are no specific tests to diagnose sepsis, but rather requires assessment and evaluation so it is imperative that the nurses use critical thinking skills and know when to alert the medical team to possible sepsis development. Paige Legal Nurse consulting has nurses ready to review the records and identify the events of your case and assess nursing actions taken (or missed).

Whether in the hospital or a nursing home, nursing is the frontline caretaker to assess and catch developing infection and septic signs and symptoms. When nursing fails to recognize the initial signs of infection and alert the medical team, sepsis can develop into a life-threatening and potentially deadly cascade for a resident/patient.

Keep a lookout in your inbox over the next couple of weeks for my emails which will talk about the different areas most noted for sepsis development. I think you’ll find them educational and informative, and ultimately helpful in your cases involving sepsis and death.

Paige Legal Nurse Consulting is a certified Legal Nurse Consulting firm with experienced acute care and nursing home nurses that are qualified to review cases involving infection and sepsis. Call 508-292-2372 or a schedule your case development review online with us today!