Not all 'surviving sepsis' intervention recs are adopted

(HealthDay)—Not all nursing interventions recommended in the Surviving Sepsis Campaign (SSC) are actually implemented in emergency departments, according to a review published in the January issue of the Journal of Emergency Nursing.

Stephanie K. Turi, R.N., from St. Vincent Hospital, and Diane Von Ah, Ph.D., R.N., from Indiana University—both in Indianapolis, reviewed the literature and summarized data from seven studies relating to implementation of early goal-directed therapy for sepsis in the emergency department.

The researchers found that monitoring of central venous pressure, mean arterial pressure, and central venous oxygen saturation were implemented in studies which discussed collaboration, preplanning, and education. Nursing interventions such as measuring urine output and obtaining blood cultures, which were recommended by the SSC, were less often considered.

"Some of the barriers to initiating the SSC guidelines can be addressed by earlier recognition of patients with sepsis and improving the processes of moving patients to the appropriate level of care," the authors write. "Future research should focus on ways to promote collaborative efforts between emergency department and intensive care unit nurse clinicians when caring for the patients with sepsis. In addition, studies implementing such guidelines need to be carried out in smaller facilities to determine the feasibility of implementing the SSC guidelines to obtain optimal patient outcomes for patients with sepsis."