Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Student (Summer 2016)
"I was granted the wonderful opportunity to work on the Natural History of Youth Concussions project with Kristy Arbogast, PhD and Ronni Kessler, MSEd. My primary work has been abstracting data from medical charts for retrospective analysis of children treated for one or multiple concussions within the CHOP network from July 1, 2012 through June 30, 2015. I have also had the opportunity to start a literature review on concussion in children ages 0-4. I have attended CIRP team meetings on concussion studies, participated in conference calls with the CDC, and I had the opportunity to attend the 4th Annual Big Ten-Ivy League Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration Summit to learn more about current concussion research across the country.
Outside of gaining more research skills and gathering more knowledge about concussion specifically, I learned a lot about injury science on a broad scale. I think what makes the CIRP team particularly successful is the interdisciplinary nature of the research. Research and knowledge is gathered from the medical sciences, biology, engineering, public health, epidemiology, statistics, psychology, social work, and sociology in collaboration to create a well-rounded, holistic understanding of injury in children. I appreciate the variety of professions and perspectives that can be tapped into here at CIRP.
I feel that my time at CIRP has helped me solidify my interest in Public Health, Epidemiology, and Medical Sociology. I know now that I want to go to graduate school and gain even more skills in these fields in preparation for a career in making positive, lasting impacts on people’s lives. I am so grateful for my opportunity to work at CIRP, not only for the experience and career networking opportunities, but also for the uplifting interactions I had with everyone within this institution."