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Sepsis Awareness Month:
Why Earlier Detection Matters

The Reality of Sepsis

Sepsis is one of the leading causes of death in U.S. hospitals. Despite greater awareness and dedicated sepsis programs, patients continue to die from a condition that can progress in a matter of hours. This Sepsis Awareness Month, understanding why remains the first step toward changing those outcomes.

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350,000+

Adults lose their lives to sepsis in the U.S. each year.

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1 in 3

Hospital deaths involve sepsis.

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1.7 million+

Americans are diagnosed with sepsis every year.

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#1

Cause of hospital readmissions.

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Detection Still Lags

Most hospitals have sepsis protocols, and many have dedicated sepsis programs.

Why?

  1. Sepsis moves faster than traditional workflows.
    It can progress from infection to organ dysfunction in a matter of hours. Every delay reduces the time clinicians have to intervene.
  2. The warning signs rarely appear all at once.
    Sepsis can be caused by bacterial, viral, fungal, or parasitic infections, and in up to half of patients, no pathogen is ever identified. The earliest warning signs are often spread across lab results, vital signs, medications, and clinical documentation instead of appearing in one clear place.
  3. Recognizing the full picture takes time.
    Manual chart review and static EHR alerts can make it difficult to recognize those scattered warning signs before a patient’s condition worsens. By the time the full picture comes together, the window to intervene may already be closing.

What Changes When Sepsis Is Recognized Earlier?

The risk of mortality from sepsis increases with every hour treatment is delayed. Earlier recognition gives clinicians more time to intervene and improve patients’ chances of recovery.

At Goshen Health, earlier detection led to:

Zero sepsis deaths for four consecutive months.

After implementing near real-time clinical surveillance, the hospital also reported:

11%

improvement in SEP-1 bundle compliance

95%

alert accuracy

~3-day reduction in length of stay for septic shock patients

Every Hour Creates an Opportunity

This Sepsis Awareness Month, hospitals have made meaningful progress in sepsis care. Every patient recognized sooner is another opportunity to improve an outcome.

Discover how healthcare organizations are helping clinicians recognize severe sepsis sooner through near real-time clinical surveillance.

Inovalon and design® and Inovalon® are trademarks of Inovalon, Inc.

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