What the scientists say about us

Trying to communicate what we do and the difference we make isn’t always easy. The message can often be a complicated one and the beneficial results of research are eked out over many years. However much the headline writers like to shout “Coffee could cure Alzheimer’s” and other improbable things, good science has to be painstaking and moves at an almost geological pace.

It’s therefore a great week when I can quote two top dementia research scientists who have worked with BRACE for years and who have put their finger on how we make a crucial difference. I would argue that we have a special and possibly unique role in engaging the public as well, but this about BRACE’s impact on research.

On Monday, Professor Seth Love of the University of Bristol compared BRACE to Heineken or, rather, its famous marketing line. Seth told a group of volunteers that BRACE reaches the parts that other charities don’t. This was not a criticism of other charities, which make a huge contribution (much bigger than ours in absolute financial terms), but pinpointed the way in which we help start research initiatives which might not otherwise see the light of day. There is ample evidence that these prove worthwhile and can lead to greater things later, once the principle has been tested.

Members of the Dementia Research Group

I was then more than a little chuffed when a copy of a local magazine (“Downend & Mangotsfield Matters”) landed on my desk, with an article about Dr Patrick Kehoe across its centre pages. Pat, who was feted as a local resident, is a colleague of Seth Love and part of the Bristol Dementia Research Group. The article focused a lot on a major clinical drug trial that is about to start (one of the greater things resulting from BRACE-funded research that I mentioned just now). However, Pat also talked about the role that this charity has played in making this and other research possible.

He said, “There is no way I’d have gathered sufficient evidence to justify the running of this trial without that initial funding from BRACE. This small, local charity has paved the way for world class study and I really want the public to know the difference they make when they put their odd £1 or £2 into a collecting tin, or support fundraising activities in the name of this amazing charity and others.”

We couldn’t really want a better endorsement than this and our supporters couldn’t want a clearer confirmation that they have made a difference already.