2018 in Review, Plans for 2019, and Happy Holidays from the Team at the Global Sepsis Alliance

Thank you for supporting World Sepsis Day, the work of the Global Sepsis Alliance, and the fight against sepsis throughout 2018.

2018 was another successful year for raising awareness of sepsis and igniting policy change worldwide.

The 2017 WHO Resolution on Sepsis was followed up by the first WHO Technical Expert Meeting on Sepsis in Geneva in January 2018.

In February 2017, the Khartoum Resolution was produced at the International Sepsis Conference in Sudan, supported by both the African Sepsis Alliance and the Global Sepsis Alliance.

In March 2018, we hosted the event ‘Sepsis - The Most Preventable Cause of Death and Disability in Europe - A Call to EU Action’ in Brussels, together with the EU Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Vytenis Andriukaitis. At this meeting, the European Sepsis Alliance was founded and the Brussels Resolution adopted.

Also in Brussels in March, we hosted a World Sepsis Day Supporter Meeting at the 38th International Symposium on Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine (ISICEM), with presentations by Konrad Reinhart, Hiroki Saito from the WHO, Simon Finfer, Vida Hamilton, Tobias Gothow, and Marvin Zick.

For World Hand Hygiene Day on May 5th, we initiated the Clean Hands Challenge, challenging health institutions around the world to participate and promote awareness about hand hygiene and sepsis.

Later in May, we launched ‘Stories of Sepsis’, a new format highlighting a very personal story of a sepsis survivor or those bereaved by sepsis every 5 to 7 weeks - so far, Mac Horsburgh, Jay & Sue Stull, Thomas Gatley, Maddy Jones, Sonia Adrissi, Fiona Gray, Mia Wilkinson, Lucy Ellis, and Verna Marzo. We will share more stories in 2019.

In June, our friends from the Latin American Sepsis Institute (LASI) hosted the XV Fórum Internacional de Sepsis in São Paulo. At the meeting, the São Paulo Declaration was adopted.

Also in June, we announced the winners of the 2018 GSA Awards, which received their awards at medical conferences and similar events throughout the rest of the year.

On September 5th and 6th, we of course hosted the 2nd World Sepsis Congress, bringing knowledge about sepsis to all parts of the world. The congress was free of charge, took place completely online, and featured 103 renowned experts from 29 countries speaking on all aspects of sepsis. All sessions were recorded and are released to our YouTube Channel and on Apple Podcasts weekly on Thursdays - sessions 1 to 13 are already available, while sessions 14 to 17 are coming December 20th, January 3rd, January 10th, and January 17th, respectively. More background on the congress is available in the 2nd WSC Report.

Shortly before World Sepsis Day on September 13th, we released the brand-new infographics, which are now available in 3 languages (English, Spanish, German).

World Sepsis Day itself was the biggest yet, with countless events in all parts of the world, from sport activities, pink picnics, events for medical professionals, gala events, to public events and much, much more. There was a lot of activity on Social Media as well, with many people using the new infographics, #WorldSepsisDay trending in some parts of the world, and our Facebook Page reaching more than 2.4 million people. The 2018 World Sepsis Day Event Poster summarizes many events and activities and is now available to download and order printed copies.

On World Sepsis Day, we launched the GSA Global Quality Measures Survey, a global survey which will shape the work of the Global Sepsis Alliance, our members, policy makers, and international stakeholders for years to come. The survey is still open, please participate and encourage your network to do the same.

In early October, we founded the Asian Pacific Sepsis Alliance - expect more news on our regional alliances in 2019.

Later in October, we held another World Sepsis Day Supporter Meeting, this time at the ESICM LIVES congress in Paris, France, with a wide array of supporters from all over the world.

In November, we launched the new World Sepsis Day Pocket Cards in two distinct versions, one for medical professionals and one for lay people. Both versions cover sepsis in adults, in pregnant women, in children, and in newborns/neonates. In addition to how to spot sepsis in said groups, the pocket cards for medical professionals also include treatment advice.

Throughout the year, we translated our video ‘What Is Sepsis? (sepsis explained in 3 minutes)’ to more languages. Besides English, it is now available in Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, Turkish, and German (YouTube links). It has been viewed over 150,000 times so far. Please continue to send it to your loved ones to let them know about sepsis - awareness save lives.

In 2019, we will continue to translate the WSD Infographics, the WSD Pocket Cards, and our video to more languages. Early in 2019, we will open applications and nominations for the 2019 GSA Awards. We will have at least two World Sepsis Day Supporter Meetings in 2019, at ESICM in Brussels in March, and at ESICM LIVES in Berlin in September. You can expect us to announce more on regional sepsis alliances in 2019, as well as to work relentlessly with our member organizations, the World Health Organization, regional governments, and international stakeholders to ignite policy change and grant sepsis the priority it deserves.
In close proximity to World Sepsis Day, we will host the WSC Spotlight 2019 - a free online congress shining a spotlight on one particular aspect of sepsis – stay tuned.

Please consider donating to support our activities.

We would like to thank all of you - our supporters, colleagues, friends, volunteers, members, and partners for an amazing 2018. We wish everybody happy holidays and a good start into 2019, as well as happiness, success, and above all, health.