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Nursing students' innovative sepsis training scheme already oversubscribed

More than 100 nursing students have been trained as 'sepsis champions' to spot the signs of the potentially fatal blood poisoning.
Katie Dutton

More than 100 nursing students have been trained as 'sepsis champions' to spot the signs of the potentially fatal blood poisoning.

  • UK Sepsis Trust estimates 260,000 people are affected by sepsis each year in the UK
  • Training organised by two students from De Montfort University, Leicester
  • One co-organiser of the training, almost died two years ago from blood poisoning

The training at De Montfort University (DMU) in Leicester was organised by two students and involved staff from Leicester Royal Infirmary’s emergency department sepsis team.

Katie Dutton
Nursing student Katie Dutton, a co-organiser of 'sepsis champions' training says
she wants to 'make sure we’re lowering the number of sepsis cases'.

Katie Dutton, one of the co-organising students of the event, almost died two years ago from blood poisoning after being admitted for a kidney infection.

Her recovery inspired her to become a nurse and use the experience to help save lives.

She said: ‘I was determined not to let this beat me and to make an example of it, and make sure we’re lowering the number of sepsis cases.’

‘I want to help stop it happening to other patients, and hopefully inspire nurses to read up about sepsis and to have it at the forefront of their mind.

‘Nursing students are the fresh faces of the NHS, they are the ones going out into the hospitals and they have to be confident about being able to recognise sepsis out in practice.’

Flood of applictions for training

Last year, Sue Morrish told the RCNi organised Nursing Children and Young People Conference of how her three-year-old son died from missed sepsis.

The UK Sepsis Trust estimates 260,000 people are affected by sepsis each year in the UK.

Fellow student and organiser of the oversubscribed DMU event, Kylie-Ann Johnson, said: ‘Originally it was just going to be an event for our cohort but then things spiralled and we had over 210 people apply to come.

‘We are hoping this can become a regular event at DMU and that nursing students feel much more confident now about spotting the signs and raising any issues.’

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