Sepsis Workflow
The early recognition of sepsis is critical to the timely treatment and prevention of progression. According to Alsolamy et al. (2014), an electronic sepsis alert tool could help recognize early sepsis. Therefore, an understanding of the processes that surrounds the identification and management of sepsis can help electronic health record (EHR) designers, end-users, and quality auditors determine the most usable and efficient method. According to McGonigle and Mastrian (2015) workflow analysis involves the "observation and documentation to understand better what is happening in the current environment" (p. 266). This paper will examine the current early sepsis recognition process and determine if any opportunities for optimization …show more content…
The EHR alerts the nurse to the presence of two SIRS criteria. This step does require an element of critical thinking by the nurse. Nurses use the clinical assessment and the data from the EHR to help develop a clinical picture of the patient's condition. The application of expertise and intuition is driven by the nurses exposure to sepsis scenarios. Does the patient have assessment findings or any history element that leads the clinician to believe that the activation of the alert was related to early sepsis? Policies guide sepsis care and allow for autonomy of the nurse to order the screening panel if criteria are met. To execute this decision, the workflow involved includes knowledge related to sepsis, history and physical assessment details of the patient, and knowledge related to the alert …show more content…
There are many elements to the workflow that require a degree of clinical judgment. Sepsis can be difficult to detect early, and the physician's role is crucial. The bedside nurse is the one who receives the alert and is the identified person to make the decisions related to the actions associated with the sepsis alert. Physicians are not always logged into the EHR and therefore could not be the only one who receives the alert. However, should both parties receive the alert? Work done by Kurczewski, Sweet, NcKnight, and Halbritter (2015) found a reduction in time to treatment from 4.1 hours to 0.6 hours when an electronic sepsis alert was utilized and sent to both the nurse and physician. An improvement in workflow could include an engagement of the physicians receiving the alerts in addition to the