| Marianne Gildea, RN, BSN, MS, CCRC is a registered nurse and certified clinical research coordinator. She is the Program Director for the international clinical trial Therapeutic Hypothermia After Pediatric Arrest (THAPCA). It is the largest pediatric trial ever conducted studying temperature control after pediatric cardiac arrest. She manages the day to day operations of 40 sites in the US, Canada and UK. She works closely with the site coordinators and principle investigators from the time of subject enrollment to one year follow-up. Prior to her work at the Data Coordinating Center, Ms. Gildea was a trauma research coordinator at a Level I trauma center. She enrolled subjects both under the traditional consent process and by exception from informed consent. Before entering research, she spent years as a bedside nurse in the emergency department, recovery room, and pediatric intensive care unit. She holds a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Georgetown University and a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University. Ms. Gildea spoke last year on the many creative ways her team has kept the THAPCA Trial running for more than six years. Her presentation “Keeping the Spark Alive in Long-term Clinical Trials” was voted in the Top 10 presentations at the Association of Clinical Research Professionals global conference in 2015. |