Sepsis Alliance and bioMérieux, Inc. Partner for Sepsis Awareness and Prevention

DURHAM, N.C. and SAN DIEGO, April 25, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- bioMérieux, a world leader in the field of in vitro diagnostics, is proud to announce that its U.S. affiliate, bioMérieux Inc. will partner with Sepsis Alliance as the 2016 National Sepsis Awareness and Education Title Sponsor, including sponsorship of Sepsis Alliance's Sepsis Challenge™ events. Together, the two organizations will host a variety of events this year to raise public awareness about the risk of sepsis, and encourage the sharing of best practices for early sepsis detection among hospitals and healthcare professionals.

"bioMérieux is committed to the early detection of sepsis risk, and their work has positively impacted the healthcare community," said Thomas Heymann, Executive Director of Sepsis Alliance. "We are very proud to work with an organization that shares our commitment to ending sepsis fatalities and injuries—so many of which are preventable with early detection and treatment."

Sepsis Alliance and bioMérieux, Inc. will co-host several "Sepsis Early Detection Recognition Events" in U.S. cities where hospital and health systems have introduced proactive protocols resulting in early detection and sharp reductions in sepsis-related mortality. These events will not only recognize the good work of these institutions, but also highlight their successes, including best practice seminars. In addition, bioMérieux will be the lead presenting sponsor on 2016 Sepsis Challenge™ events, designed to raise awareness of sepsis among the general population.

"Until a cure is found, the very best hope for sepsis patients is early detection," said Stefan Willemsen, CEO of bioMerieux Inc. and Corporate VP Americas. "bioMérieux has developed a complete range of diagnostic solutions dedicated to helping clinicians diagnose sepsis as quickly and as accurately as possible, as well as educating patients and raising awareness about the dangers of this condition. bioMérieux is committed to the diagnosis of infectious diseases for more than 50 years and we are proud to partner with Sepsis Alliance in this public awareness campaign. This organization has been instrumental in making sepsis prevention and treatment a national priority."

As part of this partnership, the two organizations have aligned their efforts to host baseball-themed events. In 2015, bioMérieux hosted its first professional baseball initiative using the "Strike-Out Sepsis" name. This year, professional-level Strike-Out Sepsis events will be held during Sepsis Awareness Month in September, 2016 at a Durham Bulls home game (September 4, 2016) and a St. Louis Cardinals home game (September 9, 2016). Each will include an honorary first pitch, bioMérieux corporate employee events, and special recognition of local sepsis survivors and advocates. In parallel, Sepsis Alliance will continue hosting its community-based "Strike Out Sepsis" events, which raise sepsis awareness in Texas and other locations.

The 2016 partnership will kick off on May 7, 2016 at the Step on Sepsis 5K in Cary, North Carolina, located near bioMérieux's U.S. headquarters in Durham. Step On Sepsis is one of more than a dozen community-based events to raise awareness of sepsis planned for 2016. This year's Honorary Event Chair is Carol Fowler Durham, a nurse educator at the UNC School of Nursing who nearly died in 2010 from septic shock. Today, Carol travels the country speaking to healthcare professionals and nursing students about sepsis early detection. To learn more details and to register for the event, visit the Step on Sepsis website.

About Sepsis Alliance
Sepsis Alliance is the leading nonprofit patient advocacy organization in North America. Sepsis Alliance's mission is to save lives by raising awareness of sepsis as a medical emergency. The organization hosts national and community events, distributes educational information, and promotes training and education on sepsis prevention and early recognition and treatment. Sepsis Alliance also supports sepsis survivors and family members with information about sepsis and Post Sepsis Syndrome, as well as a Faces of Sepsis community forum. The sepsis.org website receives 1 million visits each year. Sepsis Alliance, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, is a GuideStar Gold Rated Charity. For more information, please visit www.sepsis.org.

About bioMérieux
Pioneering Diagnostics

A world leader in the field of in vitro diagnostics for over 50 years, bioMérieux is present in more than 150 countries through 42 subsidiaries and a large network of distributors. In 2015, revenues reached €1,965 million with 90% of sales outside of France. bioMérieux provides diagnostic solutions (reagents, instruments, software) which determine the source of disease and contamination to improve patient health and ensure consumer safety. Its products are used for diagnosing infectious diseases and providing high medical value results for cancer screening and monitoring and cardiovascular emergencies. They are also used for detecting microorganisms in agri-food pharmaceutical and cosmetic products. Other information can be found at www.biomerieux-usa.com.

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