Using a Database to Facilitate the Accrual of Geriatric Subjects with Dementia for Clinical Research Studies

The internship and practicum project activities took place in an established geriatric practice that provides care to more than 2,000 patients over the age of 65. Research studies and clinical trials conducted at this site are specifically aimed at either testing the efficacy of medications and treatments in the elderly or researching disease processes predominantly found within the older population. This geriatric practice is led by Dr. Janice Knebl with the assistance of Barbara Harty, who is a seasoned geriatric nurse practitioner, IRB board member, clinical coordinator, and my mentor during the internship. The overall objective of the internship was to build a functional knowledge of how to manage research with human subjects. The internship experience spanned several domains within the field of clinical research management: clinical coordination, contract management, institutional research management, and data/records management. Within the course of the internship and implementation of the practicum project there were more than 1040 hours logged working within these areas of concentration in order to achieve that goal. The following is a narrative account of those experiences that details the Internship/Activity Log submitted as Appendix A of this report.