The Team

Professor Cathy Price - Wellcome Trust Principal Research Fellow & Professor in Cognitive Neuroscience

• Cathy is the Principal Investigator for PLORAS.
• She is an expert in how language works in the brain - in healthy adults and adults with brain injury (such as stroke).

• Alex is the clinical lead for PLORAS.
• He is responsible for describing the stroke after volunteers have their MRI scan.
• Alex works clinically and in research as a neurologist and neuroscientist.
• He has a particular interest in language recovery.

Dr Mohamed Seghier - Senior Research Fellow

• Mohamed is head of image processing for PLORAS.
• He has found new ways to identify and describe stroke sites in brain images.
• He is an expert in how language works in the brain.
• He has a background in engineering and image processing.

Dr Tom Hope - Research Fellow

• Tom is responsible for building and refining the PLORAS prediction system.
• He has a PhD in Computational Cognitive Neuroscience (number processing in the brain)
• He has a background in Artificial Intelligence.

Professor David Green - Professorial Research Fellow/Emeritus Professor

• David is a world expert in the multilingualism (speaking more than one language) and the brain.  
• He has a special interest in how language recovery might vary in monolingual and multilingual stroke survivors.

Rachel Bruce - Research Manager

• Rachel is involved in the clinical implementation of PLORAS (how to use the prediction system in clinics and hospitals).
• She also manages the Patient Team.

• She is responsible for the website, writing our newsletter and other documents, including aphasia-friendly versions.

• She has also been responsible for managing operations with our NHS sites, and administering the language assessment and helping with MRI scans.

• Rachel studied English Language before her MSc in Speech and Language Therapy.  
• She has worked clinically and in research with patients with aphasia.

Hayley Woodgate - Speech and Language Therapist

• Hayley carries out the language assessment and helps with MRI scans.
• She also assists with administrative duties, including processing participant information and MRI safety checking.
• Hayley qualified as a speech and language therapist in 2011.
• She has worked in children's and adult services, and has a lot of experience working with people with aphasia.

Storm Anderson - Speech and Language Therapist

• Storm carries out the language assessment and helps with MRI scans.
• She also assists with administrative duties, including processing participant information and MRI safety checking.
• Storm has a BSc in Speech Language Pathology and MSc in Stroke Medicine.
• She has experience treating people with aphasia in hospitals, and in the community.

Shamima Khan - Research Assistant

• Shamima is responsible for coordinating participant recruitment, including processing questionnaires, MRI safety checking, communicating with health professionals/research practitioners, and correspondence with our participants.
• She also carries out MRI scans with our participants.
• Shamima has a BSc (Hons) in Psychology and a background working within mental health.

Kate Ledingham - Research Assistant

• Kate carries out the language assessment and helps with MRI scans.
• She also assists with administrative duties, including processing participant information and MRI safety checking.
• Kate is responsible for public engagement, our website and social media accounts
• Kate has a BA in English Language and Literature, a PGDip in Psychology and an MSc in Human Communication.
• Kate has extensive experience of working with people with aphasia in acute and community settings.

Letitia Schneider - Research Assistant

• Letitia analyses the MRI data, and helps with MRI scans.
• She also processes language assessments.
• Letitia has a BSc in Psychology and a MSc in Clinical Neuroscience.
• She has experience working with neurological patients.