The Right Call: Implementing a Sepsis Diagnostic Safety Toolkit in a Pediatric Transfer Call Center to Improve Diagnosis of Children in General Emergency Settings

Sepsis is a leading cause of death in children, and an early diagnosis that improves outcomes is less likely in children who are treated in general Emergency Departments (EDs), that treat adults and children, compared to pediatric Emergency Departments. The study team, in collaboration with invested clinicians and expert partners, has developed a pediatric sepsis diagnostic safety toolkit that we will implement in a pediatric health system's transfer call center. Preparation for launch of the toolkit will include education throughout Children's Hospital Colorado (CHCO), with a focus on transfer center nurses and accepting CHCO physicians who will be partnering in delivering the toolkit. Usual avenues for clinical education will be used, including meetings, endorsement from clinical leaders, emails, and physical materials such as badge and pocket cards. Referring Emergency Department (ED) providers outside of CHCO will not receive education about the toolkit by design, since they are the recipients of the toolkit which is designed to disseminate sepsis diagnostic knowledge in real time to general EDs within existing transfer workflows. This research will test whether the toolkit improves early pediatric sepsis diagnosis in general EDs where most children receive their first critical hours of care.