Authors: (including presenting author): :
Lee BY (1), Li SF (2), Rotheray KR (3)
Affiliation: :
(1) Accident and Emergency Department, Kwong Wah Hospital, (2) Accident and Emergency Department, Princess Margaret Hospital, (3)Accident and Emergency Medicine Academic Unit, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Keyword 1: :
Sepsis Screening
Keyword 2: :
Nursing Education
Keyword 3: :
Emergency Department
Keyword 4: :
Nursing Role in Sepsis Screening
Keyword 5: :
Sepsis Education
Introduction: :
Sepsis has been regarded as one of the cardinal causes of death across the globe. Its significance and time-critical nature accounted for 20% of global deaths, according to a 2024 WHO study. As for the Hong Kong condition, Ling et al (2024) have documented a 21% surge in incidence and 1-in-4 deaths from 2009 – 2018 in the Intensive Care Unit of Hong Kong, leading to a major health burden to society. Emergency Department (ED) Nurses are the ‘gatekeepers’ for various life-threatening diseases, while it appears not to be the case in the ‘Hour-1-Sepsis Bundle', judging by its low compliance rate (Bentley et.al, 2016). Nevertheless, various studies focused on Sepsis management instead of reviewing knowledge, attitude, and self-reported competencies of ED Nurses towards Sepsis screening, or implementing educational programs prompting early identification of Sepsis in the ED (Lam et.al, 2017; Hung et.al, 2018; Harley et.al, 2019; Hung, Lam & Lui, 2021; Chua et.al, 2023; Lam et.al, 2024).
Objectives: :
This study primarily focuses on enhancing Emergency Department Nurses' knowledge of identifying suspected Sepsis patients in the ED, thereby ensuring the required competencies for sepsis screening and adherence to the Hour-1 Sepsis Bundle. The research question is: Does a Sepsis Education Program enhance the knowledge, attitude, and self-reported competencies of ED Nurses in Sepsis Early Identification?
Methodology: :
This is a single-center interventional study conducted in the Emergency Department of Kwong Wah Hospital. 70 eligible ED Nurses were recruited between October 2024 and January 2025. This study comprises 4 phases: Pre-Test, Educational Program, Post-test, and 1-month post-test. After the questionnaire study, participants were invited to the SEPSIS For Nurses program tailored to them and were asked to complete the same questionnaires immediately after and 1 month after the program.
Result & Outcome: :
A total of 70 eligible ED nurses were recruited for the 5-month study. 60 completed measurements at all points. The most significant change was the Knowledge gain, with +7.91 marks reported, followed by the shift in the attitude and competencies scale. This indicates that the education program is positively associated with knowledge gain, as evidenced by a W-value of 92 and a p-value < 0.0001. It has also been reported that, after attending the program, respondents show greater confidence and willingness to identify and manage Sepsis patients promptly and appropriately (Attitude = +4.5). The loss of knowledge after one month was also recorded; it was negligible. This study proves that a structured education program significantly improves ED nurses' knowledge of Sepsis screening.
