UK Department of Health Announces Historic Modern Service Framework for Sepsis

On Tuesday July 14, NHS England (NHSE) and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) published the Modern Service Framework (MSF) for Sepsis, outlining a ten-year vision to transform sepsis care by 2035.

The MSF aims to reduce deaths, life-changing complications, and the long-term impact of sepsis for everyone by at least 25% over the next decade. This will be achieved through better prevention, earlier diagnosis, improved treatment, rehabilitation, research, and innovation.

The ambition is simple but powerful: to make sure every person with sepsis receives the best possible care the NHS can offer, whenever and wherever they need it.

Dr Ron Daniels BEM, Founder and Chief Medical Officer of the UK Sepsis Trust, and Vice President of the GSA said: “The publication of the Sepsis MSF marks a significant moment for patient safety. For too long, progress in sepsis care has been held back by fragmented and inconsistent practice. This framework sets out to change that, and we welcome plans for improved diagnostics, treatment and care.“

Why a Sepsis MSF?

Modern Service Frameworks are a key part of the NHS 10-Year Health Plan. They are long-term frameworks designed to tackle the biggest health killers by setting consistent national standards and supporting high-quality, high-value, and equitable care across key clinical pathways. Sepsis is a priority condition for the new MSF because of the significant mortality, morbidity, and healthcare activity that results from it: it’s the second biggest killer after cardiovascular disease in England.

In the UK, five people lose their lives to sepsis every hour. It’s a life-threatening condition which arises when the body’s response to infection harms its own tissues and organs and is estimated to affect 245,000 people in the UK every year, claiming 48,000 lives.  82% of sepsis survivors are experiencing ‘Post-Sepsis Syndrome’ more than a year after hospital discharge, and 18% left permanently unable to work.

The MSF’s publication comes as sepsis continues to place considerable pressure on both the NHS and the wider economy. In 2024/25, sepsis was responsible for more than 154,000 emergency hospital admissions in England (based only on coded data, so almost certainly an underestimate), while new research from the York Health Economics Consortium (YHEC), commissioned by the UK Sepsis Trust, estimates that the condition costs the UK economy £23 billion annually.

What it means for patients

Sepsis is one of the biggest killers in England and tackling sepsis is a priority for the NHS. The new NHS Sepsis Modern Service Framework has a clear goal, to reduce deaths, serious illness, and long-term harm from sepsis by at least 25% by 2035. This means better, more consistent care for everyone across the country.

It will improve the way sepsis is treated right now, while also accelerating innovation and research to develop new and better treatments for the future. Looking ahead, a sustainable national research and innovation infrastructure — guided by patient experience and aligned with clear implementation pathways — will continue to drive improvements in care for generations to come.

What it means for HCPs

The Sepsis MSF addresses both the immediate need to strengthen existing care pathways and the longer-term ambition to accelerate research and innovation, developing new models of care that will transform how sepsis is prevented, identified, and treated.

Some patient groups face significantly worse outcomes from sepsis due to health inequalities. The Sepsis MSF explicitly prioritises reducing these disparities, ensuring improvements in care and outcomes are equitable and felt across all population groups and life stages.

Dr Daniels commented: “However, it’s important to remember that this is a 10-year plan and we are not expecting immediate delivery of all of its proposals. Nonetheless, it is hugely encouraging to see the framework’s suggestion that by 2035, we will have the best and most resilient infrastructure for recognising and managing sepsis, for all people and in all settings, in the world. “

"We look forward to working alongside NHSE and DHSC to ensure that this MSF fulfils its world-leading potential in transforming sepsis outcomes across our health system."