Kaiser Permanente's performance improvement system, part 3: multisite improvements in care for patients with sepsis.

Background: In 2008, Kaiser Permanente Northern California implemented an initiative to improve sepsis care. Early detection and expedited implementation of sepsis treatment bundles that include early goal-directed therapy (EGDT) for patients with severe sepsis were implemented.

Methods: In a top-down, bottom-up approach to performance improvement, teams at 21 medical centers independently decided how to implement treatment bundles, using a "playbook" developed by rapid cycle pilot testing at two sites and endorsed by a sepsis steering committee of regional and medical center clinical leaders.