Our SmartAge ESR5, Simon Schrenk from University Hospital Jena, completed his last secondment with our partner organization Lifelines from the Netherlands.
Lifelines biobank is a large, multi-generational, prospective cohort study that includes over 167,000 participants (10%) from the northern population of the Netherlands. Through the length, size and in-depth examination Lifelines provide many excellent opportunities for studies worldwide unraveling the etiology of multifactorial diseases focusing on multifactor risk factors (source: Lifelines-biobank.com).
With a little delay due to a COVID infection, Simon started his last secondment at Lifelines in Groningen (NL) in early February. Trynke de Jong, project manager at Lifelines and SmartAge contact person there, gave Simon a warm welcome and showed him around the modern Lifelines service building in Roden, Netherlands. For the time of his secondment, he was assigned to the data management team and was given an insight into the collection and processing of data at a large biobank. Furthermore, he was able to set up an individual data file with which he could work on a research question. Even though Simon had to adjust to the Dutch weather in February, he had a great time at Lifelines, thanks to the very friendly and open-minded lifelines employees and the exciting insight into the work of such a large biobank. Besides work, Simon enjoyed the beautiful city of Groningen, with its local food and drinks, the market, and shops.