System To Prevent GBS Infections (SToP GBS)

Executive Summary

Group B strep is the most common cause of severe infections in newborns. It is spread from mother to child during labor and delivery. There are CDC guidelines for clinicians to prevent the spread by providing antibiotics to mothers. The problem is that guidelines can be complicated and not always appropriately followed.

The solution: SToP GBS (System To Prevent Group B Strep): A system embedded in electronic medical records that provides clinicians with patient-specific recommendations to prevent the spread of GBS from mother to child during labor and delivery.

During Ignite, this team refined their prototype after talking with multiple end users and secured funds to test the next prototype. If implemented nationwide, SToP GBS has the potential to prevent hundreds of group B strep infections and the complications that can result. But, the concept is bigger than just SToP GBS. The hope is that the SToP GBS framework for building clinical guidelines into EMS can be applied to other HHS and CDC guidance.

A project supported by the: HHS Ignite Accelerator

Team Members

Gayle Langley (Project Lead), CDC
Melvin Crum, CDC
Jennifer Hudson, CDC

Milestones

March 2016: Project selected into the HHS Ignite Accelerator
April 2016: Time in the Accelerator began
June 2016: Secured funding to conduct pilot at one hospital
July 2016: Time in the Accelerator ended
Fall 2016: Anticipated roll out for SToP GBS pilot

Project Sponsor

Stephanie Schrag, Division of Bacterial Diseases, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD), CDC

Contributing Partners: 

Jonathan Wortham, CDC
Louise Francois-Watkins, CDC
Phil Carner, CDC