Clinical Research Coordinator I

Vanderbilt University Medical Center•Nashville, TN

4d•Hybrid

About The Position

Vanderbilt University Medical Center Departments of Neurology and Radiology are launching a five-year, NIH-funded study of sleep-circadian disruption in behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), the most common dementia in adults under 60. While hired to this study, the coordinator will also have opportunities to contribute to related research across the Division of Behavioral and Cognitive Neurology as program needs evolve. The study enrolls 50 patients with bvFTD and 50 age-matched cognitively unimpaired adults for 8-night home actigraphy, hotel-based ambulatory polysomnography (PSG), multimodal MRI, and comprehensive neuropsychological and neuropsychiatric assessment. The coordinator is the operational center of the study and the primary point of contact for participants and their caregivers.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in psychology, neuroscience, public health, or a related field
At least one year of clinical research or clinical care experience, or equivalent combination of education and experience
Comfort working directly with cognitively impaired adults and their family caregivers, including periodic evening PSG set-ups at the study hotel
Strong organizational skills and demonstrated attention to detail in data entry and documentation
Valid driver's license and ability to travel locally for hotel-based PSG set-ups as needed

Nice To Haves

Experience with dementia, other neurodegenerative populations, or sleep research
Familiarity with REDCap, actigraphy, polysomnography, or MRI research workflows
Familiarity with coding, statistical software (e.g., R, SPSS), or neuroimaging analysis workflows
Experience administering standardized neuropsychological measures
CITI human subjects research training and clinical research coordinator certification (or willingness to obtain)

Responsibilities

Schedule and coordinate all participant visits, including the actigraphy window, hotel PSG night(s), MRI sessions at the Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science, and in-person neuropsychological testing, working around the multi-day sleep assessment sequence
Administer and score neuropsychological and behavioral measures under the supervision of the study neuropsychologist (training provided; measures drawn from the NACC Uniform Data Set and FTLD Module)
Set up, train on, and troubleshoot home actigraphy devices, and perform evening set-ups of ambulatory PSG at the study hotel, including caregiver training on device care and sleep diary completion
Support recruitment and screening through the Vanderbilt FTD Clinic, ALLFTD cohort, and ADRC healthy control pool; track screening dispositions and enrollment against monthly targets
Obtain informed consent, including surrogate consent through legally authorized representatives for participants with bvFTD, following IRB-approved procedures
Enter, clean, and quality-check study data in REDCap; maintain participant tracking, source documentation, and regulatory binders
Coordinate IRB submissions, amendments, and continuing reviews with the program manager; prepare materials for the weekly diagnostic consensus conference
Manage device inventory, shipping, charging, and supply reordering; run the automated SMS/email reminder system for diaries and device adherence