LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y. – IPRO was recognized by the New York State Legislature in a legislative resolution memorializing September 2021 as Sepsis Awareness Month across the state. The statewide proclamation mirrors a national awareness campaign sponsored by the Sepsis Alliance.
The resolution, introduced by Senator Gustavo Rivera and state Assemblymembers Richard Gottfried, Marianne Buttenschon, and N. Nick Perry, recognizes sepsis as a “life threatening response to infection, which causes tissue damage, organ failure, and death…” It further notes that one out of three Americans will develop sepsis over their lifetime, including 50,000 New Yorkers each year. More than 250,000 Americans die of sepsis annually. Former New York State Senator Jose Peralta succumbed to septic shock in November 2018 at the age of 47.
IPRO was one of four organizations cited in the resolution. Since 2014, IPRO has worked with the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) on the New York State Sepsis Care Improvement Initiative, a quality improvement project that focuses on reducing the sepsis mortality rate in hospitals through a data-driven process. The most recent New York State Report on Sepsis Care Improvement Initiative: Hospital Quality Performance indicated a steady decline in the overall sepsis mortality rate from 32% in 2015 to 23.5% in 2018.
In addition to its work with New York State, IPRO educates hospitals, nursing home personnel and community-based organizations around the country about the signs of sepsis and the importance of mounting appropriate clinical interventions. As a Quality Improvement Network-Quality Innovation Organization (QIN-QIO) and a Hospital Quality Improvement Contractor (HQIC), IPRO does this work under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
“IPRO has been engaged in efforts to mitigate the loss of life from sepsis for more than seven years,” said IPRO’s Sr. Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, Clare Bradley, MD, MPH. “Although our initiatives have resulted in measurable decreases in overall sepsis mortality rates, there is still a long way to go. Sepsis Awareness Month helps us to spread the message about the seriousness of this syndrome, and helps orient medical professionals and the public to the signs and symptoms of sepsis so that treatment is not delayed.”
About IPRO: IPRO is a national, not-for-profit healthcare organization that works with government agencies, providers and consumers to implement innovative programs that bring policy ideas to life. IPRO does this by making creative use of clinical expertise, emerging technology, data solutions, and diverse marketplace experience to make the healthcare system work better. Incorporated in 1983, IPRO is one of the nation’s largest and most experienced healthcare quality improvement organizations.
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September 14, 2021