Dr Anna Volkmer - Study Recruitment and the Sample Size Jinx

Dr Anna Volkmer, narrates her blog written for Dementia Researcher.

Anna explores the complexities of recruiting participants for intervention trials. She stresses that an inadequately powered study risks irrelevance, highlighting the dilemma of determining the ideal sample size in both main and pilot studies. While conventional wisdom suggests benchmarks for participant numbers, these metrics are rarely straightforward, especially when dealing with a heterogeneous disease like dementia. Anna talks about her research in to Primary Progressive Aphasia, and addresses the added challenges posed by disease rarity and diagnostic ambiguity. She also delves into the ethical concerns and emotional toll of recruiting from a vulnerable population, advocating for better public education on the varied scope of medical research. This blog is a must-read for researchers, ethicists, and anyone interested in the intricacies of conducting ethically responsible and scientifically robust clinical trials.

Find the original text, and narration here on our website.

https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/blog-study-recruitment-and-the-sample-size-jinx/

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Dr Anna Volkmer is a Speech and Language Therapist and researcher in Language and Cognition, Department of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London. Anna is researching Speech and language therapy interventions in language led dementia and was once voted scariest speech and language therapist (even her children agree).

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This podcast is brought to you in association with Alzheimer's Association, Alzheimer's Research UK, Alzheimer's Society and Race Against Dementia, who we thank for their ongoing support.