In a collaboration that bridges familial ties with the forefront of medical technology, a mother-son duo has come together to simplify the process of matching stroke patients to clinical trials. Dr. Pooja Khatri, a distinguished figure in neurology, and her son, Ajai Nelson, used their expertise to create an app swiftly becoming a staple in nearly 30 institutions nationwide, including Yale University and the University of Virginia, as reported by UC.
The NIH StrokeNet Trial Finder, the app in focus, emerged from a basic necessity. Clinicians needed to quickly and accurately determine eligibility criteria for many trials, which once demanded wading through vast datasets. The original flowchart, conceived by UC's Stroke Team, was a helpful start. Still, the leap to a mobile platform, initiated by Dr. Khatri and brought to life by Nelson, transformed the flowchart's practicality. The app streamlines the process of pinpointing patient trials by prompting data inputs like stroke type and timing, then presents the fitting studies. This innovation didn't just improve efficiency. It's now expanded to include more than the initially listed StrokeNet studies, which indicate how the team listens and rapidly responds to user feedback.
Utilizing this app seems almost effortless in bridging the gap between patients and research. Clinical professionals can access information about trials, including contact details for coordinators, right at their fingertips. Dr. Khatri mentioned in the UC press release, "Sometimes I already know they’re eligible for a given trial, but then it’s just a quick way to be able to click and text the relevant coordinator."
From its humble beginnings as a high school graduate's summer project, the app has been instrumental in navigating over 10,000 potential pathways through the maze of clinical trials. What's remarkable about this app is its innovation and the story of its genesis—a mother recognizing her son's talent and utilizing his skills to supplement her vision for better healthcare delivery. Nelson's ability to quickly absorb the medical intricacies and translate them into algorithms has been pivotal. The app's progress has been tracked since March 2024, with over 250 uses spanning 29 institutions—a testament to its rising indispensability in the clinical community. Such a metric might seem dry, but it represents the possibilities for stroke patients and the advancement of stroke care itself.
In a testament to the constructive dynamic this project has fostered, Nelson humorously told UC News, "A lot of it has been needing to ask my mom a question, and she doesn’t get around to it for a long time. It’s kind of funny that she’s my mom and it still takes time to get back to me." Despite any familial quips, the significance of their joint effort has not been lost on Dr. Khatri, who expressed her pride in sharing such meaningful work with her son. According to her, having a son who possesses the requisite capabilities and displays genuine enthusiasm is a source of both luck and pride.
