Carmen Rodriguez, Ph.D., A.R.N.P., has received a $1 million grant from the Phase 2 Small Business Innovation Research program of the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Deafness and Communication Disorders to support the development of “GatorVoice,” a device to help suddenly speechless hospital patients communicate their needs.
An assistant professor in the UF College of Nursing, Rodriguez received two years of support as a CTSI KL2 Scholar during which she conducted pilot studies that examined the GatorVoice software’s feasibility and usability in the hospital setting.
The pilot studies helped provide the foundation for the NIH award, which will support the second phase of her team’s research over the next two years. Ultimately, their goal is to help prevent complications that may result from the inability of suddenly speechless hospitalized patients to accurately communicate their safety, comfort and care needs.
Read more about the project:
UF nursing professor receives $1 million grant