Konrad Reinhart – A Sepsis Giant Undaunted
“If I have seen further”, Isaac Newton wrote in a 1675 letter to fellow scientist Robert Hooke, “it is by standing on the shoulder of giants.”
As we look back over the Global Sepsis Alliance’s first decade, we reflect that our enormous achievements to date are in a large part because we stood on the shoulders of one giant advocate for patients with sepsis, Prof. Dr. Konrad Reinhart.
Great ideas and visions do not arise from the ether, but rather the seeds are planted and nurtured by the creativity, zeal, tenacity, and innovative ideas of exceptional human beings. Konrad had the passion and foresight to see the tremendous burden and ravages of sepsis globally – always with the patient focus at his heart – and had the emotional intelligence and leadership skills to bring organizations from around the world to the table to achieve a greater good.
In December 2010, Konrad brought the World Federation of Intensive Care Societies, the World Federation of Pediatric Intensive and Critical Care Societies, the International Sepsis Forum, the Sepsis Alliance, and the International Federation of Nurses together to create the Global Sepsis Alliance (GSA). Building upon momentum gained from the Merinoff Symposium earlier that same year, and celebrating the progress made by the international Surviving Sepsis Campaign in placing sepsis and septic shock on the world’s academic and health improvement agenda, Konrad’s version was to now take sepsis to a global, regional, and national public and policy level in order to establish a sustained and transformational impact.
The pace of development from the founding of the GSA has been nothing less than astounding. In 2012, Konrad was instrumental in establishing World Sepsis Day on the 13th of September each year. From modest beginnings, WSD now has over 12,000 worldwide supporters across all populated continents, with about half (over 5,900) being hospitals and healthcare facilities. WSD supporters have enthusiastically engaged in the fight against sepsis with programs and activities such as quality improvement initiatives, sepsis protocols, and education of staff and management that have demonstrably improve the prevention and treatment of sepsis.
Also in 2012, the World Sepsis Declaration – with the stated aim to decrease deaths from sepsis by 20% by 2020 – was promulgated under Konrad’s leadership. Supporting the delivery of the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 for Good Health and Well-Being (particularly the reduction of maternal, child, and neonatal mortality and non-communicable disease burden, and universally accessible health coverage), the declaration has been adopted by almost 6,000 hospitals and healthcare facilities. The Declaration and projects arising from it have seen huge regional and national successes such as those in New York State, the United Kingdom, and Australia, undoubtedly saving countless lives.
Under Konrad’s leadership, 2016 saw the launch of the World Sepsis Congress (WSC), a hugely impactful online congress attended by more than 15,000 health professionals, policymakers, and members of the public from 146 countries. This biennial meeting is interceded by WSC Spotlight meetings, each with a unique focus. The 2020 World Sepsis Congress Spotlight: “Sepsis, Pandemics, and Antimicrobial Resistance – Global Health Threats of the 21st Century” was attended by more than 10,000 delegates from 180 countries.
Also under Konrad’s leadership, the Task Force for the World Sepsis Resolution was created in 2014 with the intent of getting the World Health Assembly to adopt a Resolution on Sepsis. Submitted in January 2017, this was finally passed in May of that same year, marking a quantum leap in the fight against sepsis by making sepsis a WHO global health priority.
Konrad was tireless in his commitment to improving sepsis care and led two World Sepsis Congress Spotlight collaborative meetings with the WHO focusing on maternal and neonatal sepsis around the world and building on collaborative initiatives such as the Global Maternal Sepsis Study. He also drove regional change by supporting the formation of regional sepsis alliances including the African Sepsis Alliance, followed by Alliances in Europe, the Asia Pacific region, and the Eastern Mediterranean region with special recognition to the role already held by the Latin American Sepsis Institute.
Even during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020, under Konrad’s leadership, the GSA has continued to influence change, passing the milestone of 100 member organizations and working with the WHO again on a press release for World Sepsis Day 2020 and the second collaborative World Sepsis Congress Spotlight. As the year comes to a close, the GSA is working with the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine and Society for Critical Care Medicine on a position statement reinforcing that the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus is yet another pathogen that can precipitate deadly sepsis.
All of us who have been touched by Konrad’s enthusiasm for improving outcomes from sepsis over the last decade know that this enthusiasm is rooted in an altruistic system of beliefs around injustice and inequality, resulting in a passion that has led to systemic change. His optimistic and exuberant personality, coupled with his unwavering determination and vigor, results in an infectious combination that makes his requests hard to decline. Fortuitously, this has only resulted in good as his strategy is almost always spot on.
We now find ourselves looking ahead to the post-Konrad era. Similarly determined, and with equal collective passion and expertise, we are committed to growing Konrad’s legacy to ensure a world free of avoidable harm from sepsis. The task ahead, whilst exciting and right, would be daunting enough without a Konrad-sized void. The Executive Committee is incredibly relieved, hugely grateful, and massively indebted to his decision to remain a member of the Committee for a period of 18 months – after having stepped down as President earlier this month – with a view to ensuring a seamless and effective handover, together with his commitment to impart his wisdom as needed in the years to come.
If asked, Konrad’s humility would cause him to declare that his greatest contribution has been building this team. We would respectfully argue that his greatest contribution is his vision and that his greatest achievement has been putting sepsis on the world stage.