About

Research Focus
Dr. Hwang has developed a nationally recognized, original clinical research portfolio centered upon two major neuroscience ICU themes: (1) the varying accuracy and thought processes of clinicians when predicting functional outcomes of patients with severe acute brain injury (SABI); and (2) the decision-making and psychosocial support of family members of SABI patients who lack capacity, particularly those families who are making difficult goals-of-care decisions. He has a strong track record of both leading and participating in successful multicenter collaborative research studies on these topics. To date, he has authored or co-authored more than 100 academic articles centered around these themes, more than 40 of which are original research publications. Over the past 10 years, he has personally delivered nearly 60 national and international invited lectures and web-based talks related to his research work and has been featured as a plenary speaker at the International Stroke Conference (ISC), the Neurocritical Care Society (NCS) Annual Meeting, and the International Neuropalliative Care Society (INPCS) Annual Meeting.

Dr. Hwang has been a recipient of grant and project support from the American Brain Foundation, the NCS, the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM), and the Apple Pickers Foundation (a philanthropic foundation based out of Rhode Island). His scholarship has been recognized nationally with the Robert G. Siekert New Investigator Award at the ISC, an Outstanding Oral Presentation Award at the NCS Research Conference, and several awards at SCCM Congress: the First-Place Patient and Family Support Abstract Award, the Family-Centered Care Innovation Award, and the Grenvik Family Award for Ethics. As an academic leader in neuroprognostication and ICU family support, he is now the invited lead author for both the upcoming NCS guidelines for prognostication of intracerebral hemorrhage and the upcoming SCCM guidelines in family support in adult critical care, as well as a Co-Chair for the INPCS Science Committee. In addition to investigator-initiated work, he has served as a site principal investigator or co-investigator for more 20 multicenter neurocritical care and vascular neurology clinical trials.