Full-time PhD studentship available hosted by Lancaster University, via the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Applied Research Collaboration North West Coast (ARC NWC). NIHR ARC NWC is one of 15 regional ARCS funded by the NIHR to bring together those needed to support research to improve health and care. Our vision is to address the considerable health inequalities across our region through the collaborative production and implementation of high-quality applied health research in our five themes. Research supported by the ARC NWC must be relevant to the needs of the diverse communities served by the NIHR ARC NWC and its local health and care system, and be generalisable across health and care nationally, as well as within the local health and care system where it is conducted. Our Doctoral Fellows are distributed across the themes and universities and are a crucial part of our Academic Career Development Strategy.
The studentships will be hosted within the Faculty of Health and Medicine at Lancaster University. The Faculty's strategic aim is to produce excellent research that is both interdisciplinary and translational, having practical applications for human and societal benefit. We work within and across a number of research groups, with our PhD students as important members of those groups.
Background
Cardiometabolic disease is the number one cause of death in the world and includes cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and renal failure (1). The North West Coast has some of the highest rates of cardiometabolic disease and some of the greatest health inequalities in the UK, as a result of having some of the most deprived areas in the UK within its region in 2019 (2). These health inequalities have only been further widened during the pandemic (3).
Our research team has a programme of work using exercise prehabilitation of 2-4 weeks to prepare patients for hepato pancreato and biliary (HPB) cancer surgery. Our work shows that prehabilitation can improve patient outcomes including a reduction in hospital length of stay (4) and others have shown improvements in functional capacity, reductions in postoperative pain and postoperative complications (5). We want to know whether a short period of exercise prehabilitation of 2-4 weeks, currently used for cancer surgery, can be repurposed to treat cardiometabolic disease and thus reduce this burden on the NHS whilst recovering from the pandemic.
The overall aim of the PhD is to determine whether prehabilitation can be repurposed across the NHS to provide more effective care for cardiometabolic disease.
This aim shall be met by three specific objectives:
1. To establish whether prehabilitation can improve patient outcomes from any form of cardiometabolic surgery.
2. To establish whether prehabilitation can improve the medium-term health outcomes of those with cardiometabolic disease.
3. To establish whether prehabilitation can reduce inequalities present in the North West Coast through prevention and treatment of cardiometabolic disease with prehabilitation.
PhD candidate skill development
The PhD candidate will benefit from the experience of a project combining cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET), physiological and clinical measures, and qualitative work on health inequalities. This project will provide a rich research environment at Lancaster Medical School and East Lancashire NHS Trust providing extensive experience of working with patients and delivering an exercise intervention at scale.
Potential applicants must:
· consult the HIAT www.hiat.org.uk and demonstrate consideration of the toolkit in their research proposal
· discuss their research proposal with the appropriate Primary Supervisor prior to application
Applicants should have (or expect to have been formally awarded by 31st August 2021) at least a UK Bachelor honours degree at second class (upper division) level (or equivalent qualification) in a relevant discipline.
Applicants must have completed and been awarded any current course of study by the proposed start date (1st September 2021) otherwise they will not be shortlisted.
Applicants require an English Language level of UKVI IELTS 6.5 (no sub-score less than 6.0) or acceptable equivalent qualification.
Further information
Applications should be made by email to Dr Chris Gaffney quoting the studentship reference number ARC/0921/04. You must include:
CV (maximum 2 sides including details of two academic referees),
cover letter outlining your qualifications and interest in the studentship (maximum 2 sides) and
a document outlining your ideas for developing an aspect of the project you are interested in (up to 500 words (excluding references) explaining how you would develop the outline project plan contained within the studentship information. We do not expect a full project proposal, but would like to see you expanding on an element of the project to outline your ideas on how this could be achieved. We want to see an emerging understanding of relevant underpinning theory and empirical literature in this writing (referenced using APA style), and will be assessing this with reference to your understanding of the topic area and your ability to write succinctly, accurately yet persuasively).
Applicants MUST ALSO state the title of the project they are applying. Applications received without this information will not be considered.
Closing Date: 27 06 2021
Fixed Interview Date: 20 07 2021
CURRENT UNIVERSITY OF LANCASTER RESEARCH STUDENTS WILL NOT BE ELIGIBLE TO APPLY FOR THE RESEARCH STUDENTSHIPS
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