Thousands saved if paramedics gave antibiotics for sepsis, researchers say

Thousands of lives could be saved if paramedics gave intravenous antibiotics to patents with sepsis, researchers say.

Sepsis kills 44,000 people every year in the UK but the death rate is halved if treatment starts within an hour of it being diagnosed.

Paramedics are often the first to recognise the condition but do not routinely give antibiotics and there are no national guidelines for the treatment of sepsis patients in ambulances.

But research by the University of Portsmouth, published in the Journal of Paramedic Practice, said that lives could be saved if paramedics were trained to offer antibiotics in the critical first hour.

There are 250,000 cases of sepsis in the UK each year. 

The deadly blood poisoning occurs when the body reacts to an infection or virus and is difficult to diagnose.

The risk of death significantly increases for every hour sepsis patients are not given antibiotics. 

But the researchers found NHS bosses were reluctant to consider a UK-wide approach using intravenous antibiotics.

The Mail has campaigned to improve the care of sepsis patients since 2016.

Study author Patryk Jadzinski said: ‘According to the already published research, every hour treatment for sepsis is brought forward improves a person’s chances of staying alive, so we wanted to examine how ambulance services across the country approach this, in the absence of national guidelines or standards.

‘Paramedics can and do spot sepsis in their patients – according to data from the Isle of Wight they’ve been shown to be 93 per cent accurate in diagnosing it. Pre-hospital clinicians can and do sometimes face long delays getting that patient to hospital. We wanted to examine what barriers might be stopping a uniform, nationwide protocol to support paramedics in delivering antibiotics in that critical first hour.’

Medical directors at five of the UK’s 14 NHS ambulance services were interviewed for the study, which found widespread differences in their opinions on how intravenous antibiotics should be used out of hospital, to treat suspected sepsis.

The research found there was a drive for early sepsis diagnosis and pre-alerting the receiving hospital, but that ambulance bosses were reluctant to consider a standard UK-wide approach using intravenous antibiotics.

Mr Jadzinski said: ‘Even though paramedics are often first to recognise sepsis, and there is a drive for early sepsis diagnosis and pre-alerting the receiving hospital, the evidence base and the treatment available in the UK for pre-hospital sepsis are limited.’