Bacterial infections can result in considerable mortality and have a profound global burden [1–3]. Patients with a severe infection (e.g. sepsis) often present in an acute care setting, such as the emergency department (ED). To provide proper care in this setting, initiation of the antibiotic therapy that matches in vitro susceptibility of the causative bacteria (i.e. with appropriate coverage) is important [4]. However, the causative pathogen has yet to be identified by cultures and this process usually takes over 24 h.
