Education and friendship benefits of health research
South West Stroke survivor Adrian Cook says he has learnt a lot about his health condition and made new friends from taking part in clinical research studies.
Motivated by wishing to help find better treatments for stroke patients, Adrian has participated in four studies since 2011.
The Yeovil Hospital patient said: “I would say to anyone they should put themselves on as many studies as possible. If they don’t like the study then they always have the choice to turn it down. The benefits from taking part in research for me have been subtle but powerful. I have learned a lot about the causes, effects and recovery from stroke and made a load of friends.”
In 2016-17, 979 people were recruited onto National Institute for Health Research portfolio stroke studies in the South West of England. The Clinical Research Network for the South West Peninsula was ranked second highest recruiter out of all 15 Networks in England (adjusted for population) for this health specialty. Yeovil was the top recruiting small acute hospital in the country for stroke research studies.
The clinical research Adrian has taken part in includes a five year study into good and bad cholesterol which involved having a blood test every six months; another one requiring a trip to a London hospital for an MRI scan and answering questions twice in two years and more recently a genetic blood test and the first randomised clinical trial comparing anticoagulation with antiplatelet treatment for cervical artery dissection in stroke.
Adrian says the commitment he made as a research participant wasn’t too demanding – often involving giving samples, having tests and answering questions. He would do this activity during clinic appointments at his convenience.
When Adrian had a stroke in December 2009 he was paralysed down the right side of his body, lost his ability to speak for three months and the damage to the left side of his brain also meant he could not spell.
A positive person with a ‘can do’ attitude, Adrian worked hard with physiotherapy exercise and set himself goals. He had a phased return to his work as a commercial manager in the aerospace industry and now works full time. Adrian has learned from scratch how to spell again and he is driving. In April 2017 Adrian walked 6.5 miles from St Ives to Zennor in Cornwall.
Yeovil Hospital research nurse Clare Buckley said: “Stroke has a devastating impact on the patient and their families and yet despite the challenges of recovery, patients like Adrian never fail to inspire us when they give their time so generously to research. The developments to improve stroke treatment and quality of life for survivors are informed by research. We would never be able to make the advances being achieved in this field if it wasn’t for the contribution of participants and support of their families.”
