FAQs

The Great Minds is a group for volunteers from other health studies, interested in research and being matched with clinical trials to fast-track early diagnosis and treatments for dementia.

The aim of the Great Minds is to speed the discovery of a cure for dementia by precision-matching volunteers with innovative clinical trials and medical research.

We believe we can take years off trials and develop early therapies for dementia by matching pre-screened volunteers with experimental medicine studies.

Great Minds is part of the Dementias Platform UK (DPUK) family, a multi-million pound public-private partnership which launched in 2014. DPUK is directed by Professor John Gallacher (University of Oxford) and is supported by an executive team of ten other representatives from our academic and industry partners.

All medical research is reviewed by an independent group, called a Research Ethics Committee, to protect participants' interests. This study has been reviewed by the Oxford C NHS Research Ethics Committee.

We would advise anyone who has a concern about their memory to discuss this with their GP. Many of us find that our memory becomes less reliable as we get older and it can be a symptom of a number of conditions.

There are four steps to joining Great Minds and it only takes few minutes to complete the basic information.

1. Join as a member - You'll set up a username and password which you use to login each time you visit.
2. Tell us about yourself - Share your contact details and let us know about health as well as mood and anxiety levels
3. Take our brain health tests - These are simple tests of your memory on your computer and smartphone (if you have one)
4. ...visit regularly and repeat the tests – We'd like you to come back every six months and repeat the tests – we'll email you a reminder.

Discussion groups with research volunteers revealed that participants and public were positive about being contacted about new research opportunities. We also learned some important things for us to consider, and this has helped shape how this contact should be made. We have followed this advice in the creation of the Great Minds.