“I would recommend Clinicum support to all researchers, even if their analysis approach sounds correct to them”

What did you seek support for? / What kind of questions did you need help with?

“I was nearing the half-time seminar for my PhD project and had collected all the data for my second study. Initially, while designing the study, we had planned a conventional survival analysis for the data. At the end of data collection, however, it became unclear how to analyse the data, as data were collected at multiple time points within the same subject, making conventional survival analysis less appropriate in our view. My supervisor recommended that we seek STAT support. I really needed support in deciding on and applying the most appropriate statistical method for my study”.

How did you experience the application process and the support you received from your Clinic, which will help me in the other studies of my PhD and future career.um advisor?

“Regarding the application process, I was truly impressed. I was lucky to be allocated slots since I worried I might have submitted a late application. This demonstrated that the program is open to students who may need the service at any critical point in their academic journey”.

“The support I received was laudable. The most critical question, which was about the most suitable statistical method, was answered. The advisor also revealed that he sought the opinion of other statisticians on his idea. I could not agree less on the statistical method after further researching, and also getting insights into the method from the clinical advisor. I think I was fortunate to have sought the Clinicum support, as I benefited greatly from the advisor's expertise, which will help me in the other studies of my PhD and future career”.

Did the advice from Clinicum make you do anything different in your project compared to what you had planned at the beginning?

“The first thing I did differently the moment I began working with my advisor was to develop a statistical analysis plan (SAP) for the study. I had not written a SAP before, and got acquainted with it and developed one for my study. I also changed the STAT analysis approach I proposed in my study protocol. For example, I changed from a conventional survival analysis to a longitudinal panel data analysis for the study data. In addition, I learnt about panel data with random effects and applied it to my data. With the Clinicum support, I learnt to analyse data and document the analysis professionally, making it verifiable and transparent. The experiences were unforgettable and lifelong for me”.

Is there anything you would like to recommend to other researchers who are considering applying for support from Clinicum?

“Researchers, especially PhD students seeking Clinicum support, should not hesitate to do so. Based on my experience, I would recommend it to all researchers, even if their analysis approach sounds correct to them. An application should be made when the data has been collected”.