About
The
Job.
School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR)
Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health
Research Assistant
About
The
Job.
Pursue the extraordinary
Overview
About the Department
Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry & Health
Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health is one of the major UK centres for education and
research in health and related subjects. With origins dating back to 1828, the Faculty has a
longstanding tradition of excellence in clinical education and research. Over 2,500 students
study in the faculty each year on over 40 different courses. In addition, over 200 students
are registered on research degrees, supporting a faculty research portfolio in excess of
£30M. Independent assessments of our teaching and research quality rate us as among the
best in the UK.
With over 250 academic and clinical staff, and 250 research associates, the Faculty has the
training and development of staff at the centre of its strategic priorities. A tailored training
programme – Think Ahead – in line with the Concordat to Support the Career Development
of Researchers is available to all researchers in the Faculty. This includes a departmental
induction process; workshops linked to working-based learning opportunities; employer
lead career days; and tailored support in preparation for the end of a contract. A newly
developed career mentoring scheme with academic, industrial and alternative careers’
strands gives practical support for career development in your chosen destination. The
portfolio of transferable skills and career development courses is continuously updated and
tailored to the researcher and the employer needs and to fit with the strategic aims of the
Faculty.
For more information on current opportunities see
http://www.shef.ac.uk/faculty/medicinedentistry-health/training-for-researchers or email
Lucy Lee (L.Lee@shef.ac.uk).
School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR)
One of nine departments in the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health, ScHARR is based
in modern accommodation, mainly in Regent Court. It brings together a wide range of
health related skills in three academic sections and also houses the NIHR Research Design
Service for Yorkshire and the Humber) http://www.rds-yh.nihr.ac.uk/ and the Clinical Trials
Research Unit.
ScHARR employs over 200 multidisciplinary staff from disciplines such as Health Economics,
Operational Research, Sociology, Medical Statistics, Nursing, Psychology and Information
Science. There are also clinical skills in Public Health; Emergency and Vascular Medicine;
Rehabilitation and Mental Health.
The School conducts applied and methodological health services research (HSR) and the
2008 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) confirmed ScHARR as the UK´s most powerful
department
for HSR, with the largest volume of activity assessed as either world-leading or
internationally excellent among institutions returned. It earns over six million pounds per
year in external research funding.
ScHARR has about 80 postgraduate research students, contributes to the training of
medical
students and delivers a very successful suite of Masters level programmes to graduate
students
from around the world. It received an excellent assessment in its 2010 Periodic Review of
teaching.
This post will be based within the Public Health Section of ScHARR.
National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) School for Public Health Research (SPHR)
ScHARR is one of eight academic partners with excellence in applied public health research
that
make up the NIHR SPHR. The School’s emphasis is on identifying interventions and
approaches
that work practically, and can be applied
Job Role
The current post will contribute to the SPHR Ageing Well programme, which consists of a
number of linked projects being undertaken by collaborative teams across the SPHR partner
organisations. As part of one such project focused on describing, understanding and
addressing patterns of inequitable access to healthcare and public health interventions
among older people, the current piece of work involves a systematic review of published
literature.
The specific aim of this systematic literature review is to identify, review and summarise the
existing published evidence on age-related inequalities in the receipt of public health and
health
care interventions in older people. The key objectives would be to:
Review the literature relating older people’s receipt of health interventions, where
effectiveness is not moderated by the age of individuals in receipt of treatment;
Identify (i.e. specify) exemplar interventions and identify evidence relating to these
interventions.
You will work closely with Nick Payne (Project Lead for this piece of work) and with Sarah
Salway and an Information Scientist on planning, undertaking and writing up the review. We
anticipate that the findings from the review will be written up for peer-reviewed publication
in their own right, as well as contributing to the wider study (being led by SPHR partners
based in Bristol and Newcastle).
It is essential you have some previous experience in conducting systematic review work. It
will
also be essential for you to have some experience in critically appraising research literature
and
in writing for academic audiences. An understanding of themes related to healthy ageing
and health inequalities is desirable but not essential. Excellent interpersonal
communications skills
are essential, as well as a proven ability to work well in a multidisciplinary team and with
external
partners and to deliver work to tight timescales.
Job Description
Main Duties and Responsibilities
.Follow the methodology set out in the Research Protocol for this systematic review under
the guidance of the Lead and the Principal Investigators.
Work closely with the Information Scientist in designing the literature search, and with the
Information Scientist and wider members of the research project in determining literature
search terms.
Make a contribution to the writing of the report, setting out the findings of this literature
review and to make a contribution to the wider research project reports.
Liaise closely with the Lead for this part of whole research project (Nick Payne) and ensure
effective links are established and maintained with the other members of the project team.
Contribute to presentations of findings to the wider SPHR network and other
stakeholders as appropriate.
Contribute to the preparation of papers for journals/presentations either in-house or at
national/international conferences or seminars to disseminate research findings.
Read academic papers, journals and textbooks and attend conferences to keep abreast of
developments.
Any other duties, commensurate with the grade of the post.
Planning and Organising
Assist in the planning of day-to-day project work, to ensure delivery of the study within
agreed time-scale.
Coordinate and liaise with the Lead and other members of the research team over work
progress.
Continuously monitor progress against milestones and discuss this progress with the
Project Lead in order to identify and remedy any slippage promptly.
Contribute to advance planning to meet deadlines for formal project monitoring and
study milestones, such as data collection, data analysis and report writing.
Person Specification
Applicants should provide evidence in their applications that they meet the following
criteria. We will use a range of selection methods to measure candidates’ abilities in these
areas including reviewing your on-line application, seeking references, inviting shortlisted
candidates to interview and other forms of assessment action relevant to the post.
Criteria
Essential Desirable
Qualifications and experience
1.
Good first degree in a relevant subject (or equivalent
X
experience).
2.
Masters or PhD in a relevant discipline (or equivalent research
X
experience).
3.
Experience of planning and undertaking systematic reviews.
4.
Experience of undertaking reviews using a range of
X
X
methodological approaches.
5.
An understanding of themes related to ageing well and health
X
inequalities.
6.
Good IT skills and experience in use of relevant software
X
including
Reference Manager, Word, Excel.
7.
Experience of contributing to high quality peer reviewed
X
publications.
Communication and team working skills
8.
Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal.
9.
Experience of delivering presentations to a range of audiences
X
X
(e.g.
academic, healthcare staff and service users).
10.
Excellent interpersonal communication and team working skills
X
11.
Ability to maintain a collaborative and productive relationship
X
with
other members of the research team.
Personal effectiveness
12.
Strong organisational skills to be able to plan and progress
X
multiple
research activities at the same time.
13.
Ability to work independently.
X
14.
Ability to prioritise workload and to work to strict deadlines.
X
Further Information
This post is fixed-term for 6 months.
This post is part-time: Working 17.5 hours per week.
Benefits
Terms and conditions of employment: Will be those for Grade 6 staff.
Salary for this grade: £24,289 to £28,132 per annum pro-rata.
More details on salaries, terms and conditions and our wide range of benefits for staff are
available at www.sheffield.ac.uk/hr/reward/structures
Closing date: TO BE CONFIRMED BY HR
Informal enquiries:
For all on-line application system queries and support, contact:
e-Recruitment@sheffield.ac.uk .
For informal enquiries about this job and department, contact:
Selection-Next Step
Following the closing date, you will be informed by email whether or not you have been
shortlisted to be invited to participate in the next stage of the selection process. Please note
that due to the large number of applications that we receive, it may take up to two working
weeks following the closing date before the recruiting department will be able to contact
you.
It is anticipated that interviews and other selection action will be held on XXX. Full details
will be provided to invited candidates.
The University of Sheffield is committed to achieving excellence through inclusion.
The University of Sheffield is proud to be a Two Ticks employer
www.sheffield.ac.uk/hr/equality/support/twoticks/
The University has achieved the Athena SWAN award for Women in Science, Engineering
and Medicine.