UCLA Student Stroke Team

In 1992, recognizing the need for earlier detection and treatment of strokes, famed UCLA emergency room physician and neurologist Dr. Sidney Starkman gathered a fortunate group of UCLA undergraduate students and entrusted them with the responsibility to serve as the "eyes and ears" of the UCLA Stroke Network. Since its humble beginnings, the UCLA Student Stroke Team has expanded into a well-ordered and effective student-operated organization, consisting of roughly 25 students rigorously chosen from UCLA's student body. Students in the UCLA Student Stroke Team are involved in double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, multicenter research projects investigating the efficacy of various drugs and procedures applied to the patients that arrive in the UCLA Emergency Room with onset of acute ischemic stroke. As research associates, students learn the basis for the investigation of new drugs and interventions in stroke, the pre-clinical research, the phases of trials, and the proper interpretation of the results obtained. In their tasks, students utilize their knowledge of the study hypothesis and methodology, patient selection criteria, inclusion and exclusion criteria, and rationale for the use of the drug procedure. Altogether, students in this program play a significant role in the identification of candidates for stroke clinical trials while being exposed to stroke neurology, emergency medicine, unparalleled patient interaction and a tremendous knowledge of ongoing clinical trials.