Rory Staunton Foundation Brings National Sepsis Campaign to Pennsylvania
New York, NY (PRWEB) February 10, 2016 -- The Rory Staunton Foundation (http://www.RoryStauntonFoundationForSepsis.org), a leading sepsis advocacy organization, together with representatives of the National Family Council on Sepsis, met with Pennsylvania’s Health Secretary, Ms. Karen Murphy, last Thursday to formally request that the Pennsylvania adopt statewide sepsis protocols.
Rory’s Regulations, as the protocols are known, were adopted by New York State in 2013 and are projected to save up to 8,000 lives each year, according to NY State health officials. The Foundation is working with Health Secretaries and Governors across the country to implement the regulations in every state by 2020.
“Rory’s Regulations are simple, commonsense measures that will save the lives of Pennsylvanians and save money for hospitals and the government,” says Ciaran Staunton, Co-Founder of the Rory Staunton Foundation and father of 12-year-old Rory, who, in 2012, grazed his arm playing basketball and died of sepsis four days later.
Hospital and Health Networks recently published an article, Stepping Up Against Sepsis (http://www.hhnmag.com/articles/6730-stepping-up-against-sepsis), about the benefits of sepsis measures, both to patient mortality rates and to hospitals’ bottom lines.
Sepsis is the body’s extreme and life-threatening response to infection. It is the leading cause of death in hospitals in the United States, killing more than 250,000 Americans annually, more than breast cancer, prostate cancer and AIDS combined, and leaving hundreds of thousands more with life-changing disabilities. It is also the most expensive reason for hospitalization, costing the government more than $23 billion annually.
Mr. Staunton was joined at the meeting by National Family Council on Sepsis members and Pennsylvania residents, Mr. Chris Aiello and Mr. John Harvey. The Council, established in 2014, is a network of families that have been affected by sepsis and works to implement protocols in all 50 states by 2020 and raise public awareness of the issue. Mr. Aiello’s daughter, Emily, died of sepsis in 2015 at the age of 14. Mr. Harvey’s son, Conall, lost both legs and the fingers of one hand to the condition at four years old.
“Having Rory’s Regulations in Pennsylvania won't bring my daughter back, but I will do everything I can to spare other parents the unimaginable pain of losing a child to a preventable death from sepsis,” said Mr. Aiello. “I urge the Secretary and Governor Tom Wolf to do all they can to adopt these lifesaving, commonsense measures.”
About The Rory Staunton Foundation
The Rory Staunton Foundation was established by Ciaran and Orlaith Staunton following the preventable death of their 12 year-old son, Rory, from sepsis in 2012. The Foundation seeks to ensure that no other young person or adult dies of sepsis because of lack of recognition of the deadly symptoms by the medical community and responsible authorities. In addition, the Foundation educates the public about the signs of sepsis and the need for immediate medical attention.
Sabine Horner, Rory Staunton Foundation, http://www.RoryStauntonFoundationForSepsis.org, +1 (212) 244-6294, [email protected]
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