NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sepsis Alliance, the nation’s leading patient advocacy group promoting sepsis awareness, today announced the honorees for the 2013 Sepsis Heroes gala. Taking place on September 12, 2013 during Sepsis Awareness Month, the event will be held in New York City at Arena Event Space and will bring together sepsis survivors, family members, patient advocates, celebrities, and healthcare professionals who have been instrumental in raising sepsis awareness.
“We are thrilled to be able to announce the recipients of the second annual Sepsis Heroes award,” said Thomas Heymann, President of the Board of Directors of Sepsis Alliance. “Last year’s Sepsis Heroes was an amazing success, serving as a unique forum for healthcare professionals, patient advocates, sepsis survivors, and even celebrities to appear together under one roof. This year’s Sepsis Heroes looks to be even better, with a group of honorees that is second to none."
Winners of the 2013 Sepsis Heroes Award are:
- Gary Black, sepsis survivor and author of Gyroscope: A Survival of Sepsis
- Governor Andrew M. Cuomo of New York, who was instrumental in passing new hospital regulations after the tragic death of Rory Staunton
- GE Healthcare Education Services, a leader in raising awareness about sepsis among healthcare professionals
- David Goldhill, president and CEO of GSN (the Gameshow Network) who lost his father to sepsis and wrote about his experiences in Catastrophic Care: How American Health Care Killed My Father – and How We Can Fix It
- Mark Lambert, the first president of Sepsis Alliance, who was instrumental in helping shape and guide the organization during its infancy
- Surviving Sepsis Campaign, which has taken a leadership role in developing hospital guidelines for the management of severe sepsis and shock, while collecting data from 10,000 hospitals worldwide to better understand sepsis recognition and treatment
“The 2013 Sepsis Heroes have given of themselves to raise the alarm on sepsis in this country,” added Heymann. “We are grateful to these individuals and organizations for their efforts in raising awareness of sepsis and the incredible havoc it wreaks in our fragile healthcare system. They are truly making a difference and their actions are saving countless lives.”
Sepsis, sometimes called blood poisoning by the general public, is a life-threatening condition that arises when the body’s response to infection injures its own tissues and organs. Annually, sepsis kills 258,000 people in the United States alone, or one person every two minutes. Sepsis is a medical emergency that requires early diagnosis and rapid treatment with antibiotics and fluids.
The mission of Sepsis Alliance is to take the mystery out of sepsis, both for patients and frontline healthcare providers. By helping identify sepsis, its risk factors, and treatments, the Sepsis Alliance seeks to dramatically reduce death and injury caused by sepsis, which has a significant personal and economic impact on our society.
Tickets for the 2013 Sepsis Heroes gala are available now online, with general admission and VIP packages available. For those who cannot attend the Sepsis Heroes event, virtual tickets can also be purchased. The Sepsis Heroes evening is made possible by the generous support of several sponsors, including Spike Out Sepsis, Arena Event Space, Wolters Kluwer Health, and CytoSorbents. For companies and organizations interested in supporting the Sepsis Heroes event as a sponsor, please visit http://www.sepsisheroes.org or call us at (619) 232-0300.
About Sepsis Alliance
Sepsis Alliance is a nonprofit patient advocacy organization in the U.S. promoting awareness of sepsis. Sepsis Alliance operates by providing information and education to raise awareness of sepsis and its devastating effects, So More Survive. Sepsis Alliance also provides support by giving people affected by sepsis a forum to share information. Sepsis Alliance is registered as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, and is a founding member of the Global Sepsis Alliance. For more information on Sepsis Alliance, please visit http://www.sepsisalliance.org
