Department Name:
Primary Care & Population Health, UCL

Supervisors names and email addresses:
1) Professor Fiona Stevenson – UCL (f.stevenson@ucl.ac.uk)

Funding Status:
Directly Funded Project (UK and EU Students Only)
Stipend: £17,803

Application Deadline: 5 January 2020

Interview date: 29 January 2020

Duration: 3 years, full time

Project Description;

Greater use of digital technologies is increasingly offered up as a potential solution for health and social care services which are struggling to respond to demand. The internet is an integrated part of most people’s everyday lives and increasingly employed as the preferred platform for self-care. However, we know from existing research studies that patients may find it difficult to raise prior use of the internet in consultations and that use by health professionals in consultations is also perceived to be problematic.

The project will comprise of secondary analysis of an existing dataset (Harnessing Resources from the Internet to maximise outcomes from GP consultations (HaRI) study) to identify ways in which the internet and other digital technologies are raised and discussed in everyday practice. The practices, once identified, will form the basis of qualitative empirical work with health professionals and patients to co-produce open skills training to implement identified practices into primary care consultations.

The HaRI data set comprise 281 videotaped consultations and brief surveys, 28 interviews with selected patients and interviews with all participating GPs (10 in total).
The initial identification of strategies will preferably be done using conversation analysis. Conversation analysis focuses on a detailed exploration of the features of the ways people talk and interact with others and the interactional consequences for how interactions can develop. Full training will be given. The second part of the work is to develop what has been termed as “open skills training”; that is training based on evidence from real-life practice, to consider what happens in practice and understand the consequences of any actions. The co-production work will employ a range of qualitative techniques (such as observations, focus groups, interviews).

All candidates should preferably hold a Master’s qualification (or complete their Master’s by September 2019) in an appropriate discipline and have a minimum of a 2:1 or equivalent in their first degree. Applicants should preferably have knowledge of the UK health and care system. All applicants are required to have excellent written and verbal communication skills. They should also be willing to work collaboratively in multi-disciplinary and multi-professional teams.

Project-specific skills and experience required:

Essential:

Skills in qualitative data collection and thematic analysis.
Interest in medical interaction.
Interest in medical communication and the development of strategies for implementation. Interest in the theoretical and practical issues of implementing research findings into practice.

Desirable:

Knowledge and experience of conversation analysis.

All candidates should hold a Master’s qualification (or complete their Master’s by September 2020) in an appropriate discipline and have a minimum of a 2:1 or equivalent in their first degree. Applicants should preferably have knowledge of the UK health and care system. All applicants are required to have excellent written and verbal communication skills. They should also be willing to work collaboratively in multi-disciplinary and multi-professional teams.

Enquiries email name and address:

Professor Fiona Stevenson – UCL (f.stevenson@ucl.ac.uk)

Training opportunities
PhD students will be entitled to the full range of PhD training opportunities at their host institution. In addition, all PhD students will benefit from the training provided by the NIHR ARC North Thames Academy (The Academy). The Academy brings together PhD students from across ARC North Thames, to create a community of students training in applied health research. The Academy works alongside each host institution’s graduate training programme to equip students with the skills needed to work at the interface of academia and health services.

Our doctoral programme focuses on practical aspects of applied health research, such as the skills required to undertake research in health care and public health settings, to engage patients and the public in research, and to navigate relevant ethical and research governance approval systems. In addition, we aim to provide students with an understanding of how their work fits into current NHS structures and applied public health research environments. PhD students will be expected to attend and present at scientific meetings aimed at disseminating the findings of ARC research.

Publication and wider dissemination:
It is expected that results of the PhD research will be publishable in good quality, peer-reviewed academic journals and communicated at conferences. The research would also be expected to generate outputs tailored to applied health research, public health practitioner, and policy-making audiences.

Eligibility
Candidates should hold a Master’s qualification in a relevant discipline and have a minimum of a 2:1 or equivalent in their first degree. Applicants should preferably have knowledge of the UK health and care system. All applicants require excellent written and verbal communication skills and should be willing to work collaboratively in multi-disciplinary and multi-professional teams.
Due to funding restrictions, applicants must be UK/EU nationals. Please refer to UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) for the criteria.

How to apply
If you have queries about potential projects or would like to discuss these in more detail, please contact the appropriate supervisors by email. In case of any difficulties in making contact, please email ARC.academy@ucl.ac.uk 

Your application should consist of:

• A CV (to include qualifications, work experience, publications, presentations and prizes) plus contact details of two academic referees (references will be taken up for all shortlisted candidates).
• A personal statement (300 words) describing your suitability for the proposed project including how your research experience, skills and interests relate to the topic.
• A 1-page proposal of how you would develop the PhD project that you are applying for.

Please send your application to ARC.academy@ucl.ac.uk

Deadline: 5 January 2020
Interviews: 29 January 2020
Duration: 3 years, full time
Stipend: £17,803