Hospitals are not treating sepsis quickly enough

It has been reported that thousands of patients a year are having their lives put at risk due to their sepsis not being treated quickly enough.

As soon as sepsis is suspected, a patient should be put on an antibiotic drip within an hour.

Despite this, a study by the BBC has shown that almost a quarter of patients do not receive treatment within this timeframe.

Sepsis is sometimes described as the “hidden killer” due to hospitals often failing to spot the early signs and treat them immediately.

Even a short delay in treatment can seriously increase the likelihood of fatal complications such as organ failure from occurring.

NHS England has said that hospitals were improving their sepsis treatment times due to medical professionals improving their ability to spot patients who may be at risk of contracting the illness.

Every year in the UK there are around 250,000 cases of sepsis and 50,000 deaths.

Unfortunately, we are still seeing and hearing of patients waiting too long to be diagnosed and treated causing devastating consequences. In some hospitals, over half of patients with sepsis are not treated within the hour.

Sepsis is a complication of an infection. It occurs when the immune system overreacts when trying to combat an infection.

Sepsis can affect anyone. The vulnerable, such as children and the elderly, are not the only ones at risk, even healthy fit adults can succumb to this devastating disease within hours if not treated promptly.

It can lead to septic shock, organ failure and in the most severe cases, death.

Amanda Cavanagh, a Medical Negligence Specialist at Ashtons Legal, says: “If you attend A&E or your GP with a loved one who displays these symptoms, please do not be afraid to ask the question, could it be sepsis? It’s better to risk being wrong than miss an opportunity to raise the suspicion