The RightCall: Implementing a Sepsis Diagnostic Toolkit to Improve Pediatric Diagnosis in ED Transfer Calls

Launched by UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO, DENVER · Jun 24, 2025

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is testing a new toolkit designed to help doctors and nurses recognize sepsis earlier in children who are being transferred from general emergency rooms to a children’s hospital. Sepsis is a serious and potentially life-threatening condition caused by the body’s response to infection. Children treated in general emergency rooms—where adults are also treated—are less likely to be diagnosed with sepsis quickly compared to those treated in specialized children’s emergency rooms. This study will introduce the toolkit into the call center that manages transfers to Children’s Hospital Colorado, aiming to improve how quickly sepsis is identified during the transfer process.

Children eligible for this study are those who are being transferred to Children’s Hospital Colorado for emergency or hospital care and who show signs of sepsis either before or shortly after arriving at the hospital. Babies younger than one month old or those whose transfer call recordings aren’t available won’t be included. Participants won’t need to do anything extra; the study focuses on improving communication between emergency rooms and the children’s hospital through this new toolkit, helping doctors and nurses spot sepsis sooner and provide faster treatment. This could lead to better outcomes for children facing this serious condition.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• * Patients transferred to Children's Hospital Colorado (CHCO) for emergency or inpatient care, as identified in the extant CHCO transfer center database AND in the extant CHCO quality improvement sepsis database AND one of the following:
• • Patients who met Phoenix sepsis criteria 1) in the referring ED, 2) during transport, 3) in the first 6 hours after arrival at the pediatric hospital, or 4) patients who developed Phoenix sepsis within 24 hours of arrival at the Children's Hospital underwent independent physician review by three emergency physicians. Patients in whom all three physicians agreed sepsis was most likely present, using the structured SaferDx tool were included
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Patients less than one month of age
• • Patients whose transfer call recording was not available in the database