National recognition for Natalie Middleton and the PCH sepsis team

Perth Children’s Hospital (PCH) clinical nurse consultant Natalie Middleton is leading the nation in sepsis care for children and young people and her efforts have now been formally recognised by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC).

Natalie’s extensive work in developing post-sepsis support programs has been cited across 3 key ACSQHC documents, providing a roadmap for other hospitals to follow:

• Coordination of care and post-sepsis support - Model of Care Framework
• Coordination of care and post-sepsis support - Business Case
• Coordination of care and post-sepsis support - Supporting Evidence and Implementation Ideas

In this significant milestone, PCH has been included as a national case study in the Supporting Evidence and Implementation Ideas publication - a clear acknowledgement of the innovation, commitment and excellence demonstrated by Natalie and the broader Child and Adolescent Health Service (CAHS) Sepsis team.

This national recognition highlights the strength and leadership of the work occurring at PCH and its growing influence on paediatric sepsis care across Australia.

As the country’s first hospital-based paediatric sepsis clinical nurse consultant, Natalie provides exceptional clinical leadership to support education, early recognition, prevention and management of paediatric sepsis at PCH.

With around 40 per cent of sepsis cases worldwide occurring in children under 5, improving sepsis outcomes remains a key priority for CAHS.

Since the establishment of the dedicated senior sepsis nurse role 3 years ago through the CAHS Sepsis Working Group, Natalie’s leadership has inspired other health services around Australia to explore similar roles, positioning PCH as a model of best practice.

Natalie has established herself as a national leader in paediatric sepsis care through her passion, collaboration and innovation. Her achievements to date include:

• developing and rolling out the PCH Sepsis Pathway
• developing a comprehensive sepsis education program for staff and consumers
• establishing a local sepsis database aligned with the Sepsis Clinical Care Standard
• establishing and facilitating the CAHS Sepsis Consumer Group
• coordinating the annual CAHS Sepsis Symposium and many other community events
• leading sepsis education and implementation of clinical resources across PCH.

Central to her work is the strong partnership she has built with consumers, ensuring families have a powerful voice in shaping post-sepsis care and enabling clinicians to learn directly from lived experience.

Visit here to learn more about how we manage sepsis at PCH.