Adherence to surviving sepsis guidelines among pediatric intensivists: A national survey

OBJECTIVES: To assess the compliance with the 2006 American College of Critical Care-Pediatric Advanced Life Support (ACCM-PALS) guidelines for sepsis management, and the 2012 surviving sepsis campaign (SSC), for the management of pediatric patients with sepsis and to identify the main barriers to adherence to these guidelines. METHODS: In November 2015, a prospective cohort study in which a web based electronic survey using a case scenario to explore the usual management of a child with severe sepsis was designed and sent to all consultant pediatric intensivists practicing in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Adherences to 2012 SSC guidelines and to 4 algorithmic time-specific goals outlined in the ACCM-PALS guidelines were measured. RESULTS: Sixty-one (76%) of 80 consultant pediatric intensivists working in KSA responded to the survey. Of the 61 respondents, 94% reported administering antibiotics within one hour of the child presentation, 98% reported starting resuscitation by giving fluid boluses, 93% reported starting vasopressor if the patient remained hypotensive despite fluid resuscitation, and 86% reported they would start hydrocortisone in case of catecholamine refractory shock. In total, 80% of the intensivists reported full adherence to all of the 4 components in the ACCM-PALS bundle; 50% reported that the absence of a locally written protocol was the main barrier to adherence to the SSC guidelines. CONCLUSION: Pediatric intensivists reported good adherence to the 2006 ACCM-PALS guidelines and 2012 SSC guidelines with some variability in interpretation of the recommendations. The absence of a written protocol was the main reported barrier to adherence to these guidelines.