On a hot British summer day, my first week at the PHG Foundation draws to a close, and I have many first impressions to share. The PHG Foundation is a Cambridge-based science and health policy think-tank, with the mission to bridge the gap between science and its practical implementation in society. My internship started with introductions to all the members of the team, and immediately I was made to feel very welcome in the friendly office atmosphere. From day-one, my expectations were confirmed, in that there is a lot to learn from the dynamic, multi-disciplinary team, which includes experts from the fields of genomics, medicine, epidemiology, public health, law and economics.
My internship is under the supervision of Dr. Leila Luheshi, the science lead, and on the first day we sat down to discuss the plan for my research project on a new DNA analysis approach for cancer testing. My role will be to critically review the evidence there is surrounding this new technology and highlight the policy issues there may be in its implementation. I started this quest by consulting the scientific literature. As a PhD student I have practice in reading scientific papers, yet in this role I am looking at it from a policy perspective. With the plan being drawn up, and my work well underway, I am very much looking forward to the second week.
