Smart Triage + QI: A digital triaging platform to improve quality of care for critically ill children

Every year, millions of children under the age of five lose their lives to preventable causes, with the global burden of child deaths remaining alarmingly high, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). In 2019 alone, 5.2 million young children died, with sepsis—a severe and life-threatening response to infection—being one of the leading causes. Sepsis disproportionately affects children in Africa, where the fatality rates are significantly higher. Research has shown that early intervention, such as administering antibiotics and intravenous fluids within the first hour of recognizing sepsis, can save lives and reduce hospital stays. However, these treatments are only effective when sepsis is identified promptly, making rapid and accurate diagnosis critical.

Triage, the process of assessing how sick a patient is and prioritizing their care, plays a pivotal role in improving survival rates for children with sepsis. Yet in many resource-constrained settings, care is often delivered on a first-come, first-serve basis. This approach delays urgent treatment for the sickest children, exacerbating poor outcomes. Challenges like staff shortages, insufficient training, and limited resources lead to delays in diagnosis and treatment, especially in the critical first 24 hours after hospital admission.

To tackle these challenges, we developed Smart Triage, an innovative tool tailored for low-resource settings. Using a simple mobile app, Smart Triage leverages a scientifically validated, data-driven prediction model to identify critically ill children as soon as they arrive at the hospital. It features patient and treatment tracking as well as a real-time clinician dashboard to help healthcare workers quickly recognize children in need of urgent care and initiate life-saving treatments.

Smart Triage was designed with local healthcare providers through an iterative, user-centered approach. By pairing this tool with a quality improvement (QI) program, we ensure its effective implementation and empower healthcare teams to deliver timely, contextually relevant care. This combination of technology and frontline ownership has the potential to transform the way sepsis is recognized and treated in LMICs, saving countless young lives.