FAQ

What is sepsis?

Sepsis is the body’s overwhelming and life-threatening response to an existing infection. It is essentially a chain reaction, where the body’s normal response to fight an infection becomes out of balance. It is a serious, life-threatening medical emergency that can lead to tissue damage, organ failure, and death.

Who gets sepsis?

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), at least 1.7 million adults in America develop sepsis each year. Sepsis is a leading cause of death in the U.S. and survivors may experience physical, psychological, and cognitive side effects after recovery.

Where can I find more information about sepsis?

Sepsis Alliance website includes information on sepsis for providers, patients, and families. You can find resources for sepsis survivors and caregivers, free clinical resources for improving sepsis care in your medical facility, and tools to get involved raising sepsis awareness.

What is SIC?

Sepsis Innovation Collaborative (SIC) is a multi-stakeholder public/private collaborative that brings clinical, industry, patient advocacy, reimbursement, research, and other relevant stakeholders together with the common mission to better manage infections, solve sepsis, and save lives. SIC members are dedicated to advancing innovative solutions to identify and address gaps in infection prevention and management, sepsis diagnosis and treatment, and survivor services and support to improve patient outcomes and enhance national preparedness and response.

What is the role of Sepsis Alliance in SIC?

Sepsis Alliance is the convening organization for SIC and is responsible for coordinating logistics, determining and securing necessary resources, and facilitating effective collaboration.

I do not represent an organization or company, can I still join SIC?

Individuals with expertise and/or an interest in SIC’s mission are encouraged to apply for membership as an individual contributor. Please note that individual contributors are considered non-voting members.

What is the distinction between a voting and non-voting member?

While voting rights are reserved exclusively for organizational representatives and are not extended to unaffiliated individual contributors, these rights are currently only applicable to 1) approving the creation of new SIC communities and 2) approving changes to the SIC Charter. All SIC members, voting and non-voting, are eligible to recommend the creation of new SIC communities and changes to the Charter.

Can I invite guests to SIC events?

SIC members are encouraged to invite colleagues with expertise and/or an interest in SIC activities. If you would like to invite a guest or guests, please provide at least 48 hours advance notice to the SIC Project Supervisor, Shion Chang, at schang@sepsis.org.

How much does it cost to join SIC?

Current membership rates for organizations are outlined here. If your organization faces significant financial constraints that preclude participation without a variation from the annual dues, a request and brief justification for a dues variance can be sent to the SIC Project Supervisor. Federal, state, local, or international government agencies are not charged for membership to SIC. Unaffiliated individual contributors are also not charged for membership to SIC.

How are annual dues calculated?

Dues are calculated according to organization type based on annual revenue (for-profit organizations) or annual income (nonprofit organizations). Dues for for-profit organizations that are subsidiaries of a larger parent company will have their dues calculated according to the subsidiary’s annual revenue.

What is the IMSCC?

SIC is organized into several community groups, each focused on a specific priority issue area. In the medical device ecosystem, collaborative communities bring together stakeholders to achieve common outcomes, solve shared challenges, and leverage collective opportunities. The Infection Management/Sepsis Collaborative Community (IMSCC) provides a venue to enhance the understanding of SIC members’ perspectives by fostering communication and knowledge sharing, to better align on regulatory requirements and science in the medical device ecosystem. The development of the IMSCC was guided by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) Collaborative Communities Toolkit.

How do I get involved?

Thank you for your interest in SIC. You can begin the process of becoming a member by completing the membership application form here.

I still have questions, who do I contact?

Please contact the SIC Project Supervisor, Shion Chang, at schang@sepsis.org with any additional questions.