Sepsis Awareness training
This training helps you recognise the signs of sepsis in residents and respond quickly to save lives. Sepsis is a life-threatening condition triggered by infection that can progress rapidly. You will learn how to spot early warning signs, when to seek urgent medical help, and how to support residents recovering from sepsis.
What This Training Covers
A clear, practical grounding in sepsis awareness.
This training helps you recognise the signs of sepsis in residents and respond quickly to save lives. Sepsis is a life-threatening condition triggered by infection that can progress rapidly. You will learn how to spot early warning signs, when to seek urgent medical help, and how to support residents recovering from sepsis.
Learning Outcomes
By the end, your staff will be able to:
What Your Team Will Learn
A closer look at the sepsis awareness module.
The module is built in short, practical sections. Each one teaches a part of the topic, then applies it to a real care scenario and checks understanding before moving on.
What is Sepsis and Why It Matters
Sepsis is a common and potentially life-threatening condition triggered by an infection. It severely disrupts the body's immune system. If not treated quickly, it can lead to multiple organ failure and death. Sepsis claims more lives than lung cancer and is second only to heart failure as a cause of death. About a quarter of sepsis cases end in death, but early treatment can save lives.
Who is at Risk of Sepsis
Anyone can develop sepsis after injury or minor infection. However, residents are more at risk when they are already unwell, particularly with conditions that weaken their immune system. People who have wounds from accidents or who have had surgery are also at higher risk. Sepsis is more likely to be caused by bacterial infections, but it can also result from viral and fungal infections.
Early Warning Signs of Sepsis
The early signs of sepsis are amber warning signs that need urgent attention. These include high temperature or fever, low body temperature with chills and shivering, fast heartbeat, and fast breathing. Other signs are not urinating for several hours, passing urine that is cloudy and smelly, and mental confusion evidently relating to the current condition. If you notice any of these signs, you must act quickly.
Severe Sepsis and Septic Shock
Sepsis progresses through three stages: sepsis, severe sepsis, and septic shock. Severe sepsis and septic shock are red to very red warning signs. These include abnormal heart activity with no or little pulse, very fast breathing, feeling dizzy or faint, and patches of discoloured skin. Other signs are continuing lack of urination, sickness and vomiting, further changes in mental ability, severe muscle pain, and possibly becoming unresponsive. The person may have chills due to rapid fall in body temperature, low blood pressure, or become unconscious.
Taking Prompt Action When You Suspect Sepsis
When you notice signs that might indicate sepsis, you must take prompt action. Report straight away to the duty manager or nurse. If there is any delay, seek urgent medical advice from the GP service or phone 111. Where the signs indicate severe sepsis or septic shock, ask for the emergency ambulance service by phoning 999 with a view to the person being admitted to A&E. When discussing symptoms with medical helpers, you are encouraged to check if sepsis is indicated.
Supporting Recovery from Sepsis
Residents who are treated in hospital will need a recovery plan on discharge with an assessment of the risks of recurrence and longer term effects. Recovery depends on the person's health resilience and the severity of the sepsis. You must be alert to longer term signs such as the person feeling lethargic or excessively tired, having weak muscle movements, having swollen limbs or joint pain, and having chest pains and breathlessness. Check the person's care plan for their progress and signs of relapse, report promptly any concerns, and seek medical advice as necessary.
Key Points Covered
The things your team must remember.
- Sepsis is a life-threatening condition triggered by infection that can progress rapidly to organ failure and death
- Early warning signs include high or low temperature, fast heartbeat, fast breathing, not urinating, and mental confusion
- Severe sepsis and septic shock signs include discoloured skin, blue lips, very weak pulse, and becoming unresponsive
- Report suspected sepsis immediately to the duty manager or nurse, or if delayed phone 111 or 999 depending on severity
- Residents who are already unwell, have wounds, or weakened immune systems are at higher risk and have sepsis warning flags in their care plans
- Always mention sepsis as a concern when speaking to medical services so they understand the urgency
Who and how often
Sepsis Awareness is refreshed every year, for the staff in your care setting whose roles require it.
CQC and standards
Supports the training evidence CQC expects to see for a well-run, safe care setting.
How CareStream Delivers It
Not a slideshow once a year. Training that sticks.
CareStream delivers sepsis awareness training in the hub your team already uses, grounded in best practice and your own policies, so it fits your care setting and not a generic template.
Teach, then assess
Short teaching sections and a real care scenario, then an assessment that checks understanding.
In any language
Staff complete it in over 60 languages, while your records stay in English.
Learn and retry
A wrong answer triggers a short follow-up lesson and a fresh question, so the gap is closed.
Renewals handled
Automatic reminders at 90, 30 and 7 days, with a live compliance dashboard.
FAQs
Frequently asked questions.
Give your team sepsis awareness training that actually sticks.
See how CareStream delivers your mandatory training in the hub, in any language.