‘ Rory’s Regs’ quicken action and save lives

N. Y. hospital rules named for young victim of sepsis

New York regulations named after a 12- year- old victim of sepsis increased the chance of survival from the potentially deadly condition, a study out Sunday shows.

“Rory’s Regulations,” named for the late Rory Staunton of New York City, requires hospitals to quickly perform a checklist of safety measures when people show up at hospitals with sepsis. A report in the New England Journal of Medicine Sunday found the faster hospitals completed the checklist of care and administered antibiotics, the lower the risk of death in hospitals from sepsis. With each additional hour it took, the risk of death increased 4%.

Sepsis, which occurs when the body’s response to an infection injures its own tissues and organs, is the biggest killer of hospital patients. More than 1.5 million cases of sepsis occur in the U. S. annually and more than 20% of people who contract sepsis die from it.

“This is an amazing policy that happened,” says University of Pittsburgh medical school assistant professor and physician Chris Seymour, lead author on the study.

“Minutes matter, and it is critical to perform the correct tests and get the patient antibiotics as fast as possible,” said co- author Mitchell Levy, a physician and professor at Brown University’s medical school.

Ciaran Staunton, Rory’s father, says he seldom uses this word but calls the findings “huge.”

“I have met a lot of the families saved in New York because they had to rule out sepsis,” says Staunton. “I’ve been to the grave sites in other states where there were no protocols.”

Staunton has met a lot of people period. A jovial Irish immigrant who wears his hurt in his eyes, Staunton was well- connected with politicians including former secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer through his ownership of the Irish bars O’Neill’s.

Two weeks before Rory died on April 1, 2012, he was at the White House with his father for a St. Patrick’s Day party. Since then, Staunton notes, about 2 million people have died from sepsis. About 1,400 people attended Rory’s funeral.

Physician Atul Gawande, who was not involved in the new study said, “being able to make a dent” in the number of sepsis death is “impressive and important.”

“It’s real evidence that time matters,” he added.

The study comes a month after New York State reported the chance of adults dying from sepsis decreased by more than 20% in the state due to the regulations. There was no effect shown for children, but the report said there were too few treated to develop meaningful results.

Rory Staunton would have been 18 on May 13.

FAMILY PHOTO Rory Staunton was 12 when he died of sepsis in 2012. His death lead to “Rory’s Regulations” in New York state.