Composition of the coordinating centre and trial steering committee {5d}
stroke, TSC
STROKE
The University Hospital of Umeå is the coordinating centre where the Chief Investigator (the first author) and a trial management group (TMG) work. The coordinating centre oversees the fiscal management of the study, ethics approvals, subcontracts with other participating clinics and other financial and oversight responsibilities. The TMG consists of two research nurses, two medical engineers, two RCT coordinators and the Chief Investigator. The TMG provides daily support and troubleshooting to the local participating clinics and has a brief meeting once a week to discuss actual issues.A trial steering committee (TSC) is composed of a national collaboration among four universities and regions in Sweden. The TSC includes an independent chairperson (the last author) and multiple independent members (coauthors), including statisticians, persons with biomedical engineering degrees, rehabilitation and trial experience and patient representatives (nonauthors). TSC responsibilities include clinical setup of the study, ongoing management, study promotion and planning for the interpretation and dissemination of results. TSC meetings were held monthly during the trial planning phase. TSC meetings will take place annually at a minimum to monitor study progress and provide public, clinical information during the active phase. Moreover, professional advice to TMG members will be provided in a timely manner via e-mail or telephone when needed. The TSC will be responsible for reviewing issues and any concerns warranting modification or termination of the study.An advisory board consisting of three professors within the stroke field will provide supervision and feedback on the project annually to the TSC. Together with TSC, this board will ensure that the interpretation of findings is applicable to current practice.