As she explains, she actually fell into working in the field of dementia by chance, through a placement year assignment during her undergraduate degree, and very quickly realised this was what she wanted for her career.

“I really enjoy working with people living with or at risk for dementia and their family members in a research environment, their commitment to working with us to find better ways to diagnose and treat these diseases is always a great motivation to get up for work each day. I think it’s a disease area where research has such a huge potential to make a difference and it’s a really rewarding career to have.”

Having received her BSc at the University of Bath, going on to earn an MSc from University College London, and finally receiving a PhD in Psychiatry at the University of Edinburgh, Sarah was able to gain vital experience through that time by working both within the NHS as well as the world of academia.

So, what was it about Scottish Brain Sciences that drew her?

“When Craig [Ritchie] first introduced his idea for SBS, I knew it was something really exciting. The vision that SBS has to change how research is done in Scotland, and bring these research opportunities directly to the public so that we can identify innovations faster, was something I wanted to be part of helping to deliver.”

And it’s that passion and vision within Scottish Brain Sciences that she feels will open a world of possibilities for the future of Alzheimer’s research.

“Having worked in clinical trials for Alzheimer’s disease for a number of years with countless failed trials, I think the recent news of positive trials and the successful development of blood-based biomarkers has really re-energised the field. Opportunities for better diagnoses, treatment and prevention of future dementias are all things we can work on with our partners in SBS.”

Our team, our trial participants, and our research will certainly benefit tremendously from Sarah’s passion and experience, and we couldn’t be happier to have her here!

Welcome to the team, Sarah!