Sepsis is a life-threatening condition that happens when the body’s immune system has an extreme response to an infection, causing organ dysfunction.
Standardised sepsis pathways support clinicians to identify sepsis risk factors, signs and symptoms, empower escalation to a senior clinician for review and guide management of a timely resuscitation bundle which includes rapid antibiotic treatment and haemodynamic support.
WA Paediatric Sepsis Pathway
The WA Paediatric Sepsis Pathway was developed in collaboration with clinical experts from the Perth Children’s Hospital (PCH) Sepsis Program and the WA Paediatric Sepsis Pathway Working Group comprised of stakeholders across the state public health system.
The pathway aligns with the state-wide Paediatric Acute Recognition and Response Tool (PARROT) chart. It is adaptable to support hospital level processes.
For WA Health hospital facilities:
- Paediatric Sepsis Pathway Template.pdf
- The pathway templates provide functionality for hospital specific escalation of care (hospitals to provide information in blue text prompts). Hospital/health service level endorsement and governance processes are required.
- Sepsis pathways do not replace senior clinician judgement. Performing a full PARROT clinical assessment is recommended along with consideration of each patient's needs and circumstances.
Standardised Maternal and Adult Sepsis Pathways will be added to this website over the coming year.
Paediatric Sepsis Pathway supporting resources
These resources have been developed by the WA Child and Adolescent Health Service (CAHS) and should be read in conjunction with this
disclaimer (external site).
WA Sepsis Pathway Project
The WA Sepsis Pathway Project is a statewide collaboration between Patient Safety and Clinical Quality in the Department of Health, WA clinicians and expert working groups. Pathway implementation in hospital sites during 2024 and 2025 will be accompanied by a coordinated education effort.
The project aims to reduce clinical variation in care, improve health outcomes for people with sepsis across WA Health, reduce duplication of effort across Health Service Providers (HSPs) in developing pathways and support hospitals in meeting the Sepsis Clinical Care Standard (CCS).
Registry for change
All change requests to the WA Sepsis Pathways should be lodged to the Medicines and Technology Unit.
Recommendations for change must be evidence based, with the primary objective of improving patient safety.
Acknowledgement
The WA Paediatric Sepsis Pathway has been adapted from PCH Sepsis Pathway Version 2. Thank you to the PCH team who have supported this process.
Disclaimer
These documents are intended to provide guidance only upon which to base clinical decisions. They must not be solely relied on or used as a substitute for assessing the individual needs of each patient.
- Government of Western Australia, Department of Health. Disclaimer (external site). Limitation of Liability.