Sepsis Alliance Voices

Sepsis, like many medical conditions, disproportionately impacts those who have historically lacked access to quality healthcare, including some communities of color and individuals experiencing poverty. We aim to help close gaps in patient outcomes and expand access to high-quality sepsis care.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when specific strains of bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites learn to defeat the antimicrobial medications we used to kill or stop them. Because sepsis often requires effective antimicrobials to treat, AMR is particularly dire for patients with sepsis. Curbing the threat of AMR is one of our top priorities.  

Clinicians, researchers, innovators, policymakers, and the public need good data to better understand sepsis, and therefore to improve its diagnosis and treatment. One of our top priorities is getting sepsis data collected in a readily available place, so that those fighting sepsis are better able to understand what they’re up against.

Infection or sepsis is the second leading cause of pregnancy-related mortality in the U.S., and the U.S. has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the industrialized world. We aim to help improve outcomes for people who develop sepsis during or following a pregnancy, so that more survive pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period.

When Carl Flatley, DDS, MSD, founded Sepsis Alliance, there wasn’t sufficient focus on sepsis in the general public, hospitals, or in the halls of government. In 2021, sepsis awareness levels among U.S. adults were up to 65%, up from 19% when Sepsis Alliance was first founded. Still, more than 1.7 million Americans are diagnosed with sepsis every year, so we have a long way to go. As advocates for better sepsis awareness and care, we aim to keep the national spotlight where it belongs—on sepsis.