Better team communication to find the cause of shock
Official title: Shock Patients: Interprofessional Communication to Enhance Diagnosis (SPICED)
Funded at Northwestern University · NIH-11128540 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project tries a new team-based communication process to help hospital clinicians agree on what's causing a patient's shock so patients get the right care faster.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Northwestern University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Chicago, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2023 |
| Project end | July 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $499,999 |
| NIH project number | 5R18HS029483-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11128540 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are hospital patients who develop shock and receive care from emergency, critical care, or other participating clinical teams at study hospitals.
✕Less likely to help
Patients who are not hospitalized, who receive care outside participating hospitals, or whose condition is unrelated to acute shock are unlikely to be affected.
What this research studies
If I'm a patient who comes in with shock, hospital clinicians often disagree about the cause and that can delay treatment. The team will study why nurses, pharmacists, emergency and critical care doctors, and specialists reach different conclusions about shock causes. Investigators will design a step-by-step process for these clinicians to share their information and build a shared understanding of the likely cause. That process will be put into clinical practice and measured to see whether clinicians agree more often and whether treatment decisions change.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could help hospital teams diagnose the cause of shock more quickly and reduce errors, complications, and deaths.
How similar studies have gone: Structured communication and team-based interventions have improved safety in hospitals, but applying a formal shared-decision process specifically for diagnosing shock is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
-
Northwestern University
Chicago, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Stey, Anne M — Northwestern University
- Study coordinator: Stey, Anne M
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.