Whilst awareness of sepsis has improved in recent years, new research suggests the public is far less confident when it comes to recognising the signs early enough to act.

Lucy Mellor, senior associate in JMW’s clinical negligence team, discusses the symptoms of sepsis and importance of raising awareness.

Recognising sepsis

With sepsis causing five deaths every hour in the UK, it shows many people still don’t understand what the symptoms of sepsis look like or how fast the condition can become fatal.

According to a 2024 YouGov survey commissioned by the UK Sepsis Trust, 94% of UK adults are aware that sepsis is a medical emergency. However, when asked if they could identify the symptoms, only 31% said they felt confident they could.

The consequences of late sepsis detection are severe. According to NHS England, sepsis leads to an estimated 123,000 hospital admissions and 36,800 deaths in England each year.

Survivors often face devastating long-term effects. These include limb amputations, kidney failure, post-sepsis syndrome, cognitive issues, and psychological trauma. These are just some of the issues, which I have witnessed in the cases I have worked on.

Nationwide sepsis messaging

NHS England heavily promotes awareness of other time-critical illnesses including stroke and heart attack. For instance, campaigns such as “FAST” for stroke symptoms (face, arms, speech, time) are widely recognised and easy to remember.

However, unlike stroke or heart attack, sepsis symptoms don’t always appear dramatic or obvious. In fact, they’re often dismissed as minor illnesses such as: flu, fatigue, gastroenteritis, or a bad cold. This is what makes early identification difficult.

Health professionals warn that sepsis progresses quickly and can lead to multi-organ failure, permanent disability, or sadly death within hours if untreated. That urgency contrasts sharply with the slow pace of public understanding. Sepsis has yet to benefit from the kind of clear, nationwide messaging that would help people identify it early.

Early warning signs of sepsis also vary between adults and children, overlapping with more benign illnesses. This variability makes it harder for people to trust their instincts or recognise when something is seriously wrong.

Why sepsis awareness lags behind

That absence in public messaging is mirrored in professional settings. The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman reported that NHS England investigated 44 sepsis cases in 2023–24, its highest figure since before the Covid-19 pandemic. The findings were consistent with those detailed in earlier reports. Failures to escalate, poor documentation, inadequate triage, and a reluctance to challenge initial assessments all remain ongoing areas of concern.

Without clear public language to frame urgency, and a uniform clinical escalation pathway across trusts, symptoms can be missed at home and misread in hospital.

The risk with sepsis is not only that it progresses quickly, but that it often progresses in the background of apparent stability. A patient may be alert, mobile and communicating, until they are not. This is why delays in treatment are frequently raised in clinical negligence claims.

The legal perspective shows a pattern. Early warning signs are recorded but not always acted on. Family members raise concerns that are not always escalated. Comorbidities are wrongly treated as explanations for deterioration, rather than red flags for infection. Too often, they result in avoidable deaths or permanent injuries such as amputation.

Bridging the gap

Sepsis Awareness month exists not just to raise awareness but to also raise expectations.

Campaigns must move beyond general awareness and focus on symptom recognition and behavioural action.

Public health bodies have proven that widespread understanding of medical emergencies is achievable. The FAST campaign changed how people responded to stroke symptoms. Chest pain now prompts swift medical action. Sepsis deserves the same clarity.

A public-facing tool like FAST, but for sepsis, could save lives, by helping people confidently identify the symptoms of sepsis.

Clinicians know how to treat sepsis and families know when something isn’t right. What’s missing is the national conversation that connects those two truths. I hope to see this conversation develop and, in turn, save lives.