Research Assistance Information

The NANOS research mentor will speak with you and review your proposal.  This mentor does not take the place of local departmental or institutional mentorship, but rather serves as an additional individual who is knowledgeable about neuro-ophthalmology and research methodology.

If the proposal is appropriate for a multicenter study or clinical trial, the NANOS research mentor will suggest that these proposals be referred to NORDIC for consideration and advice.

Sometimes the NANOS mentor will suggest the engagement of biostatistics and epidemiology faculty at the researchers home. Consultation requests are submitted on the accompanying page but you should be prepared to discuss the following items with your mentor (realizing that they may be at an early stage of development):

• Proposed design: If it is a clinical study then please describe the design in terms such as observational, case-control, randomized, double-masked, etc. If it is a basic science study then please gift a short introduction as to the design of the study (in vitro, in vivo, etc)
• Hypothesis: Describe the primary/secondary outcomes to be evaluated, preferably in terms of a quantifiable difference between two or more groups.
• Sample size if a clinical study is proposed: How many patients do you realistically believe you can enroll in each group and what is the magnitude of the difference you expect between the groups?  How much does your primary outcome vary (e.g., the range or standard deviation)?
• Statistical methods: If possible, propose what types of statistics you plan to use or need help in performing.  If you plan to perform your own statistical analyses, what software package are you going to be using?

The NANOS research mentor may be able to help in: determining the appropriate statistical method, basic power and sample size calculations, review of research proposals regarding study design and biostatistics issues, and the review of questionnaires and data collection instruments. 

NANOS will evaluate requests and assign your questions to a volunteer NANOS research mentor who will contact you via e-mail and set-up a telephone discussion, as appropriate.  The NANOS research mentor will keep all discussions confidential in a fashion similar to the peer review of grant proposals and manuscripts.

Return to the Research Mentorship page.