With preparations for the pitch complete before the event, selected delegates were given an adrenalin inducing '30 seconds to go' warning before their presentations and asked to use an appropriate prop to summarise their research in plain English.
"I was the first of eight presenters (including 5 post-doctorate and 2 other doctorate researchers). I briefly summarised the current background on hand problems, comparing this to looking into a crystal ball," said Dan. "I attempted to explain the methodology I am using in a simple way and highlighted how this method is suitable for my PhD research questions, finishing exactly as the buzzer went at four minutes."
Specifically designed for early-career methodologists, the rest of the day comprised of an overview of the Medical Research Council (MRC) and National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Programmes, a session on communicating research to a non-scientific audience, methodology for stratified medicine and the future of clinical trials methodology. View the programme.
Dan is based at the Arthritis Research UK Primary Care Centre at Keele University. His research proposes to use existing health research data held at the Research Centre to provide evidence on the functional presentation, long-term course and outcomes of primary care in patients with hand pain and osteoarthritis. He is supervised by Dr Kelvin Jordan, Professor Danielle van der Windt and Dr Jo Protheroe.