Did you ever imagine the possibility of recording a lecture days after giving birth?

At the moment, I am able to participate in the conference and even present my work because it is virtual. I can even watch while breastfeeding which is amazing and something I never thought I would do. While I had timed all my recordings to be before my scheduled due date, my son had his own plans and came out two weeks early. By this time, I had already recorded for my talk on Gender Bias in Stroke Trials for the Gender Differences session but not my presentation on Promoting gender equality in stroke leadership—Asia Pacific perspective. Fortunately, the recording for the second talk was very flexible and I had very helpful people around me! My husband and nurses took care of the newborn and I had some peace and quiet to record– the day after having an emergency C-section. There was probably no way of giving this presentation live but the availability of recording opened many doors for me and also for many others from different parts of the world who would not normally have been able to attend the conference.

How did you come to be interested in stroke research?

I became interested in stroke research during my clinical neurology training in the Philippines— there was so much unmet needs there and the opportunity to explore them through research was massive. However, it was when I joined The George Institute in Sydney Australia  that I really delved into stroke research. I have some really great mentors at the institute who involved me in their exciting clinical trials and helped me start my own program of work on gender differences in stroke. One of my passions now is looking at the gender bias in clinical trials and how to enrol more women in these stroke trials.

What topics are you most excited about from the ESO-WSO 2020 conference?

The most obvious ones are those on sex and gender differences, stroke in women sessions which the ESO-WSO 2020 dedicate more than adequate time to. I am also keen to catch up on small vessel disease, cognition, AF, clinical trials and of course, the guideline sessions. There are too many to list — I am glad that I have three months to watch all the session.

How do you balance your work and private life?

This is a good question and one that I do not really have an answer to. In my opinion, the work/life balance is a myth. I am fortunate that I love what I do so I do not mind if, at times, it spills over my off-hours or if my home responsibilities creep into my work hours. I think the key to achieving near-balance of work and life is having very supportive people around you. As an example, when I had to take my maternity leave two weeks early, my supervisors and colleagues were the first to suggest that I re-allocate my work to those who were able or to hold off on some projects that could wait upon my return. My clinical colleagues were also incredibly understanding when my patients had to be rescheduled into their already full list.

Bringing work home or being flexible with work hours to accommodate home responsibilities probably does not suit everyone. However, having a flexible and accommodating work environment at The George Institute is something that I truly appreciate. And finally, I have a husband and young daughter who indulge me especially when there are deadlines that need to be met.

Will we meet you in Helsinki next September?

Would love to be in the next ESO! I cannot wait!

Something about myself

Hi! I’m Elissa Embrechts and I’m a physiotherapist since 2018. After obtaining my Master’s degree in 2018, I dove into science and became a true PhD student. During the first year of my PhD, I mainly wrote grants to further support my research, which paid off. I had the opportunity to receive a 4-year grant to perform research, in which I aspire to increase the knowledge on the association between cognitive problems and motor recovery/function after stroke. My further aspirations are to be discovered over the years, but I am already quite sure that it will still involve ‘cognition after stroke’.

How did you get involved in stroke research?

I had the opportunity to carry out my Master’s thesis in stroke research. During that time, I really enjoyed working with the research team and my interests in neurorehabilitation and particular stroke rehabilitation grew exponentially. After completing the thesis, my supervisor asked whether I would be interested in a PhD. Of course, I had no doubts and immediately said yes.

Why did you choose this topic?

The association between cognition and motor recovery after stroke has always intrigued me. I suspected such association to be clinically present. But after reading a lot about the topic I soon realised that this association has not yet been well-understood. Therefore, such cognitive problems are often not directly addressed by physiotherapists, while they might (?) be the reason for the delayed recovery – at least that is what I suspect and what I’m further investigating. My special interests go out to spatial neglect because it is frequently present after stroke and because of its very heterogeneous clinical presentation.

What have been the most difficult challenges regarding your research career so far? 

Pursuing a PhD comes with various challenges. My biggest challenge so far has been the grant writing process. When I started, there was only money to pay me for one year. If I did not get a grant, I could not stay. “Fighting” for a spot and the opportunity to carry out what you love and what you’re most interesting in is both difficult and rewarding. The grant writing comes with many obstacles and insecurities. But it is also THE opportunity to become an expert in the topic. Apart from that, you also learn how to write and how to “sell” your research. Another challenge has been the organisational talent that you need to have. Combining different tasks comes with the duty of planning your schedule: including patients, testing patients repetitively over time (and keeping them motivated), managing the databases, writing manuscripts, teaching, … It took me a while to manage this properly!

How do you balance work life and free time/home life?

I usually don’t feel as if my work life influences my free/home life. But sometimes there’s no escape from it, especially since ‘working from home’ is the new normal now. I guess I have a very clear working routine that I adhere to, which helps me in separating these lives. After closing my office door, I force myself not to open my mailbox and not to think too much about work. So far, this has worked for me.

What do you think a mentor should do to support the projects and the career of a mentee and, conversely, what should a mentee expect from a mentor?

Difficult questions. I believe a mentor needs to find the balance between, on the one hand, giving the mentee the freedom to implement his/her own ideas (for example, while writing protocols and manuscripts). Moreover, the mentor should encourage the mentee to work independently and to find creative solutions for their problems on their own. On the other hand, a mentor should keep a supervising eye and should make adjustments or suggestions to improve the quality of the research. A mentee might expect this kind of supervision, but should not demand the mentor’s full attention. They should both respect each other and each other’s work load.

Something about myself

I am a robotic engineer with a strong interest in translating new technology to clinical applications. My field of expertise is in remote magnetic navigation where we use a magnetic field to navigate precisely catheter, guidewire or untethered microdevice.

How did you get involved in stroke research?

There is still a large potential to improve the care for patient affected by stroke. Stroke patient could benefit from new method to navigate a thrombectomy device in the tortuous neurovasculature or for the target delivery of therapeutic directly at the stroke location.

Why did you choose this topic?

The opportunity to partner with clinician to improve the tools and method to improve the treatment of stroke.

What have been the most difficult challenges regarding your research career so far?

The large gap existing between the academic research in medical robotic, the industry developing and commercializing medical devices, and the clinician using those medical device.

How do you balance work life and free time/home life?

By taking time offline to go in the nature hiking, running, camping, canoeing and coming back to the office with new inspiration.

What do you think a mentor should do to support the projects and the career of a mentee and, conversely, what should a mentee expect from a mentor?

A mentor should give a mentee the freedom to explore his own idea and support him in building the right network to move his project forward. The mentor is one of the first person supporting a new project and the support of an experienced mentor give credibility to a project. This is extremely important to secure resource for a project.

Something about myself

Hi everybody, I’m Matteo. I am an Italian Neurologist. I come from Rome, where I attended the Medical school and the Neurology residency. At the moment, I work as a clinical neurologist in Cesena, Italy, mainly as a stroke specialist. I am also a PhD student in Neurological Sciences.

How did you get involved in stroke research?

Back in the residency, I was involved in Neurosonology and post-stroke neuroplasticity studies. Then, I spent a fantastic year in Oxford, joining the Oxvasc study. Once back in Italy, I wanted to shift towards more acute-phase focused research.

Why did you choose this topic?

I’ve always found fascinating the research on the pathogenesis of neurological diseases. In this light, stroke field it is so broad and complex. It is not just a clot in a vessel. Moreover, there is a challenging clinical side that is continuously developing.

What have been the most difficult challenges regarding your research career so far? 

The two main issues of my research career are time and funding. My clinical contract doesn’t provide for research activities, so I have to conduct my studies in my free time. The other issue is money. I am continually struggling to find fundings for my projects.

How do you balance work life and free time/home life?

Honestly, they are quite unbalanced! I try to make weekly plans, but it the end is a day-to-day process. I attempt to make the most of every possible situation. Like night shifts: the glass half full is that you have free days for research.

What do you think a mentor should do to support the projects and the career of a mentee and, conversely, what should a mentee expect from a mentor?

Ideally, the mentor should adjust the mentee’s aim without altering the proposed projects. It’s about to obtain the best from your hard work, and someone more experienced may (or should) know better what is “the best” in a broader way. The mentor should also assist the mentee to get into his networks.

I think that what a mentee wants from the mentor is sharing common purposes. If the mentor is not interested or involved in your research project, you are wasting your time. So, let’s be clear from the beginning!