Perris, CA -- (ReleaseWire) -- 09/08/2016 --Nile's Project, a public awareness and educational organization dedicated to preventing unnecessary deaths from hospital-acquired infections and sepsis, today urged all health care professionals and every individual to participate in two free webinars sponsored in September by the U.S. government's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

"Participating in the two webinars is very timely since they are offered after the CDC issued a report on Aug. 23 declaring sepsis a medical emergency, and a deadly disease that more medical practitioners must take prompt action to prevent and recognize earlier," said Ty Moss, Chief Executive Officer for Nile's Project said.

The first webinar is "Advances in Sepsis: Protecting Patients Through the Lifespan." It is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 13 at 3 p.m. EDT.

Register at: https://cc.readytalk.com/r/nyb6mktutwf9&eom

The second webinar is "Empowering Nurses for Early Sepsis Recognition." It is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 22, at 2 p.m. EDT.

Register at: https://cc.readytalk.com/r/jgtxnnpp9bw2&eom

"When sepsis occurs, it should be treated as a medical emergency," said CDC Director Tom Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. "Doctors and nurses can prevent sepsis and also the devastating effects of sepsis, and patients and families can watch for sepsis and ask, 'could this be sepsis?' Sepsis is the body's overwhelming response to infection. It can happen to anyone at any time. When doctors and nurses identify sepsis early, patients have a much better chance of survival."

The CDC says, "Saving patients from sepsis is a race against time," calls sepsis "a medical emergency" and "encourages prompt action for Prevention and early recognition."

Niles's Project was formed nine years ago when Ty and Carole Moss unexpectedly lost their 15-year-old son, Nile, to MRSA, also known as a hospital-acquired "superbug." Drug-resistant bacteria such as MRSA kill an estimated 100,000 individuals of all ages annually in the U.S. alone. Nile became one of the 254,000 people who die of sepsis every year when healthcare professionals miss or ignore the clear signs and symptoms of sepsis. Nile's Project has represented consumers of healthcare through the Consumers Union/Consumer Reports national team of patient advocates.

Carole Moss tells the families story on this YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDYRN0t0TTc

"Our support of the webinars is part of our advocacy at Nile's Project to require that all U.S. heath care practitioners and hospital trustees be certified in the basics of prevention and treatment before their licenses are renewed each year," Moss said. "We feel strongly that this certification must include four vital areas: infection prevention, Sepsis resistance, antibiotic resistance and stewardship, and environmental cleaning."

Nile's Project is also working with the CDC and the U.S. Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and most recently with the national Quality Innovation Network-Quality Improvement Organizations (QIN-QIO) network, to encourage better health, better care and lower costs under the overall umbrella of improving the quality of patient safety.

The CDC study issued on Aug. 23 (available at: http://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/sepsis) shows that 7 in 10 patients with sepsis had recently interacted with healthcare providers or had chronic diseases requiring frequent medical care. Sepsis is a complication caused by the body's overwhelming and life-threatening responses to infection. The CDC called healthcare providers "the critical link to preventing, recognizing and treating sepsis."

The CDC's Sepsis Morbidity and Mortality Report abstract is available at:
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/65/wr/mm6533e1.htm?s_cid=mm6533e1_w

Moss said there are a variety of ways the health care professionals and individuals can educate themselves. He said that educational materials, include posters, are available from the CDC website: http://www.cdc.gov and from the Nile's Project website: http://www.nilesproject.com

These materials include the Sepsis Vital Signs overview and the full CDC Sepsis Report.

This year, Nile's Project, the Alliance for Safety Awareness for Patience and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have been working closely with the national QIN-QIO network, which supports beneficiaries, providers, and healthcare workers to improve patient safety with a series of educational talks and interactive discussions on safe healthcare practices and procedures. The Foundation is also one of 120 White House partners working in partnership with the CDC to educate the public on the global threat of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

About Nile's Project
Nile's Project has been responsible for the adoption of Nile's Law in California, which mandates that hospitals publicly report incidences of hospital-acquired infections. Nile's Project has also produced free music concerts where detailed patient safety information was provided to hundreds of families, and participated in numerous health fairs where thousands of individuals were made aware of practical ways to prevent deadly infections.

Website: http://www.nilesproject.com