Week 1

A stroke can be defined as "lack of oxygen to the brain which may lead to paralysis. Damage to a group of nerve cells in the brain is often due to interrupted blood flow, caused by a blood clot." For me when I thought of someone having a stroke I always believed that some form of paralysis would occur, however I have learned that the symptoms of a stroke can be anything from paralysis to hallucinations. In the Prabhakaran lab, the two studies that I will be a part of and shadowing are the Stroke BCI study and the Stroke Plasticity. Both studies are a must in research for treatment and rehabilitation after a stroke, but do not guarantee a cure or complete restoration of life before a stroke.

The first day of my internship I was scared of what I would be doing, whether or not I would mess up, and if I would be liked by the members of this lab. I was expecting a lab where I would be doing generally the same thing every day and the "typical" science lab with lab coats, however this lab is completely different from my expectations. Normally we do things in 2-3 hour blocks, whether it's working with a participant, analyzing data or reading publications/researching more science terms. My job started out slow, all I did was read papers and consent forms, and I felt that I wouldn't have a chance to be in the action, but by Thursday I was already a part of the recruiting team. The neuropsychological test consists of 10+ different mini "brain" quizzes to test ones' memory, attention, language, visuals, and mental skills. Along with shadowing the lab members running the fMRI tests and the neuropsych tests, a big piece of the study that I am working on is data analysis and data sorting. Each participant of the study has to repeat the fMRI and neuropsych test 15-22 times throughout their time, meaning that the data manager and their helpers has to go through every data and add that to excel and make sure the data is accurate and there are no mistakes. With this lab I am not allowed to take pictures of participants doing any of the neuropsych tests or in the fMRI without their permission, but I am allowed to take photos of the tools that are used and use any photos that do not identify a specific patient (things such as their face, any papers with their birthdays, etc.)

The most important thing that I learned this week wasn't necessarily about the science behind strokes or rehabilitation methods, but the importance of privacy. Every day and multiple times a day I was warned by the lab manager, "Mama Teresa," the importance of de-identification and not imposing on participant's privacy. Often when one has gone through a stroke or another medical disease it can become a very sensitive topic and the reminder of that can be painful for anyone. I felt that this week I got a chance to learn how to form relationships with participants in the study, while still respecting them and their privacy and maintaining a formal and research relationship. Overall, this week I learned many things, both scientific information and information about the work field. I learned that being patient is the most important thing, but also speaking up. The first few days I was just given paper after paper to read, and I felt that I would never actually see the scientific part of this lab, but after waiting a couple of days and seeking out the lab manager doors opened up and I got to be a part of multiple areas in these studies and in this lab.