Introduction

The introductory paragraph of anything relating to pediatric sepsis has a familiar refrain about it. It goes something like… Pediatric sepsis is common, is responsible for significant morbidity and mortality, and is the leading cause of pediatric deaths worldwide—striking down both healthy and at-risk children.1–4 There is a large evidence-based therapeutic arsenal available to treat sepsis and reverse shock, with contemporary consensus guidelines—and ample data to show that increased adherence to such guidelines significantly improves outcomes, including survivorship.5–9 Pediatric sepsis is a multi-billion dollar problem annually in the United States—with costs that rise year after year.10 Not surprisingly, health systems are experiencing increased levels of mandatory performance and outcome reporting from national and state regulatory bodies and looming pay-for-performance metrics.