The Sepsis Conference 2025
Salford Professional Development’s Sepsis Conference took place on 31st July, 2025, bringing together leading experts, survivors and advocates to raise awareness, share research and drive improvements in the recognition and treatment of sepsis. The event was hosted at Adelphi House at University of Salford, providing the best setting for a day of insightful talks, heartfelt stories and collaborative discussions.
The conference opened with remarks from Chair Irrum Afzal, Digital Health Transformation at HCA UK, Vice Chair for Research and Innovation at NOA, AI in Healthcare researcher, who set the tone for a day dedicated to tackling one of the most urgent and life-threatening medical conditions.
The morning began with an extended keynote from Ron Daniels, Founder and Joint Chief Executive Officer of the UK Sepsis Trust. Ron highlighted the indiscriminate nature of sepsis, a condition that can affect anyone from the very young to the otherwise healthy, and the critical importance of early recognition. His keynote highlighted the UK Sepsis Trust’s mission to empower both healthcare professionals and the public to ask the vital question: Could it be sepsis?
Delegates then heard from event sponsor B Braun Ltd, where Sam Hodgson, Ready-to-Use Product Manager, explored “Driving efficiency and releasing time to care: The case for ready-to-use medicines”. His session covered an introduction to B Braun Medical, the value of ready-to-use products, and their applications for sepsis. This was followed by refreshments and networking.
The late morning sessions included a moving personal testimony from Aaron Speer, UK House of Lords Private Secretary to the HR Director, who shared his journey as a sepsis survivor and explored the question, What does life after sepsis look like? This was followed by Claire Burnett, Sepsis Lead Nurse at Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, who delivered a practical session on improving sepsis awareness, practice and patient management.
A thought-provoking panel discussion titled How do you know it is sepsis? brought together Claire Burnett, Aaron Speer, Dr Nveed Chaudary and Professor Paul Dark, giving delegates a multi-perspective view of diagnosis challenges and examples of best practice.
Following lunch and further networking, the afternoon keynote was delivered by Dr Nveed Chaudary, Chairperson of the JCSR Foundation. In his deeply personal session, In Honour of Jibraan: Turning Tragedy into a Mission for Sepsis Innovation, Dr Chaudary shared his late son’s story and discussed the urgent need for faster identification of sepsis in cancer patients, the role of antibiotics and the link between blood cancer and sepsis.
The final session of the day was led by Professor Paul Dark, Vice Dean for Health and Care Partnerships at the Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health at The University of Manchester. His presentation on the ADAPT Sepsis UK multi-centre clinical trial explored biomarker-guided antibiotic treatment, outlining the trial’s aims, results and potential to transform patient care.
Chair Irrum Afzal closed the conference with thanks to all speakers, delegates, sponsors and the dedicated SPD team who made the event possible.
The day offered numerous opportunities for networking, knowledge exchange and professional collaboration. With the passion and expertise shared in each session, the Sepsis Conference proved to be an important platform for driving change in the fight against sepsis.
Salford Professional Development looks forward to welcoming delegates again at the next Sepsis Conference. Keep an eye out for announcements and registration details to secure your place.
