january 22, 2024: a week in the life

this week

I ran some sensitivity analyses for my meta-analysis this week, which are analyses that confirm or deny the robustness of my main results. I also learned why and how to implement heterogeneity measures, which (as I mentioned last week) give readers an idea of how similar or different studies are within a meta-analysis. They’re a bit of a pain to code, but I suspect the interpretation gains will be worth the effort! I also read, for the first time, about assessing small study effects (reduced in some papers to publication bias, but encompassing a broader set of causes of heterogeneity). These are effects that cause studies with fewer participants to show different results from studies with more participants. Finally, I tried to devise clearer ways to present my mountain of results. That remains a work in progress.

next week

I want to draft my interpretation of these results (probably terribly the first time around) and investigate what they might mean for further analyses. I also want to make a mind map of the disparate areas my subject brings together so that I can better plan future studies. This might include how certain risk factors, behaviours, and demographics relate to one another in the blood donor population.

on the reading list

Quee FA, Peffer K, Ter Braake AD, Van den Hurk K. Cardiovascular benefits for blood donors? A systematic review. Transfus Med Rev. 2022 Jul;36(3):143-151. doi: 10.1016/j.tmrv.2022.04.004.

outside the lab

I attended a few gatherings this week, including a birthday celebration, a student recital, and a meeting in the University’s new-ish West Hub. The latter is a thriving space for collaboration that I want to use more often.

weekly photo

more of college cat Silly (he sat on me)

about me

I’m Yaning (she/her), a PhD candidate in Public Health and Primary Care at the University of Cambridge. I am working with colleagues in the Blood and Transplant Research Unit, the Cardiovascular Epidemiology Unit, and NHS Blood and Transplant (England’s national blood service) to improve the safety and efficiency of voluntary whole blood donation. I’m supervised by the amazing Dr Lois Kim and funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research. This is my blog about my journey through this candidature, starting from nine months before my transfer of status. Please feel free to reach out at yw645 [at] cam [dot] ac [dot] uk!