Time-to-use of Intravenous Antibiotics in Patients with Sepsis in whom Activation of the Sepsis Fast Track Protocol was Facilitated by the National Early Warning Score

Sepsis is associated with high mortality and morbidity (1). In 2017 the World Health Organization reported more than 30 million cases of sepsis worldwide, and more than six million deaths per year had been attributed to sepsis (2). The mortality rate reached 35.09%, making sepsis the fourth leading cause of death worldwide (3,4). To improve survival in cases of sepsis the Surviving Sepsis Campaign Bundle 2018, guidelines recommend administering empirical intravenous antibiotics within one hour and adequate fluid resuscitation in sepsis cases with hypotension or with serum lactate levels ≥4 millimoles per liter (mmol/L) (1,57).