Royal Surrey County Hospital Commended For Tackling Sepsis Killer

Published on: 18 Jul, 2016
Updated on: 18 Jul, 2016

Red and white striped socks advertise the Royal Surrey County Hospital’s staff’s awareness of the danger of Sepsis.

Guildford’s local hospital has been highly commended for its campaign to tackle a condition that kills approximately 40,000 people in the UK every year, more than breast cancer, bowel cancer, HIV, and road traffic accidents combined.

The Royal Surrey County Hospital was recognised for its ‘Sock it to Sepsis’ campaign in the Clinical Leadership category of the Patient Safety Awards, given at the annual ceremony of the National Patient Safety Congress.

The awareness programme, which launched in 2015 and saw staff don distinctive red and white stripped socks, provided staff with additional training and support to recognise the early symptoms of sepsis.

Sepsis is a condition triggered by an infection, that if not treated quickly enough could lead to multi-organ failure and death.

The campaign, which has now been rolled out in all areas of the hospital, culminated in the launch of one of the first maternal sepsis pathways in the UK.

Geeta Aggarwal, anaesthetic registrar and clinical research fellow, said: “The aim of the campaign was to make sepsis recognition and treatment part of the fabric of the hospital and that has really happened.

“We are very proud that are initiative has been acknowledged nationally. As a result of this and other important projects in the hospital, the Trust now has one of the lowest mortality rates in the country.

“The Trust is now also helping other hospitals to launch their own initiatives to tackle sepsis.”