Sepsis as Hospice Diagnosis

[lpoore]

Hi all! I wondered if sepsis can be used as a primary admitting diagnosis for hospice?

Thanks,

Linda

[MunoRN, RN]

The overall mortality rate for sepsis is about 40%, higher than for most types of cancer. If "early sepsis" is excluded the mortality rate is well over half. For those who chose to forgo treatment, as many people do, survival is unlikely. It's these folks that decline treatment that I mainly seen sent out with hospice to assume care. Comorbidities can certainly decrease the ability to compensate for the effects of sepsis, but more often than not sepsis is still the primary cause of death.

[toomuchbaloney]

The overall mortality rate for sepsis is about 40%, higher than for most types of cancer. If "early sepsis" is excluded the mortality rate is well over half. For those who chose to forgo treatment, as many people do, survival is unlikely. It's these folks that decline treatment that I mainly seen sent out with hospice to assume care. Comorbidities can certainly decrease the ability to compensate for the effects of sepsis, but more often than not sepsis is still the primary cause of death.

Yes, sepsis is the primary cause of death. However, those who are foregoing treatment of sepsis and accepting a terminal diagnosis are generally doing so BECAUSE of some other underlying health diagnosis and condition, in my experience. So, for example, the guy who recently died from sepsis actually was hospice appropriate because of the sepsis AND his CVA.