scholarly journals Ten years of NIHR research training: perceptions of the programmes: a qualitative interview study

BMJ Open ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. e046410
Author(s):  
Paula Burkinshaw ◽  
Louise D Bryant ◽  
Caroline Magee ◽  
Peter Thompson ◽  
Lisa Ann Cotterill ◽  
...  

ObjectivesThe UK National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) training programmes were created to build and sustain research capacity in healthcare. Following the training programme 10-year strategic review, this qualitative study aimed to deepen understanding of facilitators and barriers for those progressing through NIHR-supported research careers.DesignSemistructured qualitative study.Data collection and analysisTelephone interviews conducted between May and August 2017 were digitally recorded, transcribed and analysed using Framework Approach.SettingUK National Health Service (NHS) Trusts, university medical schools, District General Hospitals, Integrated Academic Training Programme centres and Research Design Services across the North East, North West, South East and South West of England, London and the Midlands.ParticipantsFourteen women and eight men, of whom, 14 were previous or current NIHR personal awardees (seven doctors and seven allied health professionals (AHPs) or nurses) and eight were managers (staff within clinical or university training-related roles).Results(1) NIHR awards were viewed as transformative for research careers; (2) however, there were perceptions of a biased ‘playing field’. (3) Inequalities were perceived for AHPs and nurses, those outside of established research institutes and those in ‘unfashionable’ specialisms. (4) While support for NIHR awards contributed to a healthy research culture, (5) short-term awards were perceived as a barrier to continuing an independent research career.ConclusionsParticipants perceived many strengths of the NIHR training programmes in terms of developing individual careers and research capacity. Areas in which improvement could enhance the ability to attract, develop and retain researcher were identified. Our findings are of relevance to schemes in other countries, where healthcare researchers experience similar challenges. Further work is needed to overcome barriers and ensure equity of access to, and success within, clinical research training schemes to sustain the research workforce needed to address future global health challenges.

F1000Research ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. 583
Author(s):  
Rony Zachariah ◽  
Dermot Maher ◽  
Abraham Aseffa ◽  
Mahnaz Vahedi ◽  
Pascal Launois ◽  
...  

Background:  TDR, The Special Programme for Research and Training hosted at the World Health Organization, has long supported Low- and Middle-Income Countries in strengthening research capacity through three training programmes: the Postgraduate Training Scheme (PGTS), the Clinical Research and Development Fellowship (CRDF), and the Structured Operational Research Training InitiaTive (SORT IT). In the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, we assessed whether those trained through these programmes were involved in the COVID-19 response and if so, in which area(s) of the emergency response they were applying their skills. Methods: From the records for each training programme, we identified the individuals who had completed training during the relevant timespan of each programme: 1999-2018 for the CRDF scheme, 2015-2020 for PGTS, and 2009-2019 for SORT-IT. Between March and April 2020, we sent trainees an online questionnaire by e-mail. Results: Out of 1254 trained, 1143 could be contacted and 699 responded to the survey. Of the latter, 411 were involved with the COVID-19 response, of whom 315 (77%) were applying their acquired skills in 85 countries. With some overlap between programmes, 84% of those trained through CRDF were applying their skills in 27 countries, 91% of those trained through PGTS were applying their skills in 19 countries, and through SORT IT, this was 73% in 62 countries.  Skills were being applied in various areas of the emergency response, including: emergency preparedness, situation analysis/surveillance, infection control and clinical management, data generation, mitigating the effect of COVID on the health system, and research.  Depending on the type of training programme, 26-74% were involved in implementation, operational or clinical research. Conclusion: Research training programmes build research capacity and equip health workers with transferable core competencies and skillsets prior to epidemics. This becomes invaluable in building health system resilience at a time of pandemics.


F1000Research ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. 583
Author(s):  
Rony Zachariah ◽  
Dermot Maher ◽  
Abraham Aseffa ◽  
Mahnaz Vahedi ◽  
Pascal Launois ◽  
...  

Background:  TDR, The Special Programme for Research and Training hosted at the World Health Organization, has long supported Low- and Middle-Income Countries in strengthening research capacity through three training programmes: the Postgraduate Training Scheme (PGTS), the Clinical Research and Development Fellowship (CRDF), and the Structured Operational Research Training InitiaTive (SORT IT). In the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, we assessed whether those trained through these programmes were involved in the COVID-19 response and if so, in which area(s) of the emergency response they were applying their skills. Methods: From the records for each training programme, we identified the individuals who had completed training during the relevant timespan of each programme: 1999-2018 for the CRDF scheme, 2015-2020 for PGTS, and 2009-2019 for SORT-IT. Between March and April 2020, we sent trainees an online questionnaire by e-mail. Results: Out of 1254 trained, 1143 could be contacted and 699 responded to the survey. Of the latter, 411 were involved with the COVID-19 response, of whom 315 (77%) were applying their acquired skills in 85 countries. With some overlap between programmes, 84% of those trained through CRDF were applying their skills in 27 countries, 91% of those trained through PGTS were applying their skills in 19 countries, and through SORT IT, this was 73% in 62 countries.  Skills were being applied in various areas of the emergency response, including: emergency preparedness, situation analysis/surveillance, infection control and clinical management, data generation, mitigating the effect of COVID on the health system, and research.  Depending on the type of training programme, 26-74% were involved in implementation, operational or clinical research. Conclusion: Research training programmes build research capacity and equip health workers with transferable core competencies and skillsets prior to epidemics. This becomes invaluable in building health system resilience at a time of pandemics.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clémence Brun ◽  
Alexis Akinyemi ◽  
Laurène Houtin ◽  
Claire Mizzi ◽  
Thierry Cardoso ◽  
...  

Objectives: Providing quality care requires compassion, and encouraging caregivers to develop a patient-centred care relationship could be beneficial for both patients and caregivers. Such a goal can be achieved through mindfulness-based programmes, which can improve caregivers’ compassion and self-compassion. They are particularly relevant for caregivers, as they have a high risk of experiencing work-related burnout due to the high level of involvement required in their work. We hypothesised that a mindfulness training programme specifically focused on situations that are relevant for caregivers could improve patient–caregiver relationships and the care provided by the latter. Methods: We conducted a qualitative study with 10 interviews designed to explore the perceived psychological consequences of such training programmes amongst caregivers who experienced a mindfulness training programme specifically elaborated for the medical staff at APHP Sorbonne University (i.e., the Mindfulness Based (MB) CARE programme). Results: Content analysis results showed that the training had an overall positive impact on the caregivers’ ability to feel compassion toward their patients and themselves. The caregivers were more attentive to their patients and their needs, without being able to articulate how well they were paying attention to them. The programme also helped them develop kindness towards themselves and their patients. The participants were better able to accept more sympathetically the difficult experiences they might encounter in the workplace or those reported by their patients. Conclusions: We conclude that professional mindfulness training programmes could be operational levers for institutions aiming at fostering a more compassionate caregiver–patient relationship, which in turn, can improve the efficiency of care provision.


2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 185-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Walsh ◽  
Nicholas Taylor ◽  
Donna Hough ◽  
Paul Brocklehurst

Purpose – The purpose of this paper was to evaluate a pilot training programme run by Health Education North West to promote clinical leadership amongst general dental practitioners (GDPs). New powers and responsibilities for clinicians have caused a fundamental shift in the way that local services are planned and delivered in England. GDPs are being appointed onto the boards of local professional networks (LPNs) to influence the way that services are delivered at a local level. Analogous to clinical commissioning groups in medicine, the role of LPNs is to ensure that GDPs lead change and drive up the quality of service provision. Clinical leadership has been argued to be fundamentally important in these new structures, but has received little attention in the dental literature. Design/methodology/approach – Semi-structured interviews and a focus group were held with participants of the pilot to explore their understanding and experience of clinical leadership. These were recorded, transcribed verbatim and underwent thematic analysis. Findings – Nineteen codes were identified and organized into four themes: nature of clinical leadership, challenges for clinical leaders in dentistry, Leadership Exploration and Discovery programme evaluation and future direction. Practical implications – The research provides an understanding of how GDPs conceptualise clinical leadership and provides recommendations for future leadership training programmes. Originality/value – This is the first evaluation of a leadership programme for GDPs and so helps address the paucity of evidence in the dental literature.


2008 ◽  
Vol 13 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 6-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tina Ramkalawan ◽  
Paul Dieppe

The HSRC was awarded a large core grant specifically for research capacity development and training, with the aim of facilitating future high quality HSR in the UK. This was used to pursue three main areas of activity. First, the provision of small grants to facilitate the development of new work, help create new, multidisciplinary groupings and support junior researchers. Of the various schemes discussed, the research initiation grants (max £6000) and workshop awards (max £3000) appear to have been particularly valuable. Second, appoint cohorts of PhD students to pursue four-year training programmes (rather than the traditional three years), during which they received individualized research training and development opportunities with an emphasis on both multidisciplinary HSR training and generic skills training, as well as pursuing their own research projects. Third, improving research training opportunities by developing networks for research staff at various stages in their careers and organizing workshops and courses in specialist HSR subjects, and for generic skills training. The premature closure of the HSRC prevented us from fully evaluating these initiatives and, arguably, their real value will not be apparent for some years. However, we believe that the programme was successful and that it went some way to helping us break out from the traditional, entrenched approaches to research training, and to helping us think of research capacity development as being as important as doing the research itself. But much more remains to be done.


2010 ◽  
Vol 38 (6) ◽  
pp. 670-671 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey V. Lazarus ◽  
Samantha A. Wallace ◽  
Jerker Liljestrand

The issue of strengthening local research capacity in Africa is again high on the health and development agenda. The latest initiative comes from the Wellcome Trust. But when it comes to capacity development, one of the chief obstacles that health sectors in the region must confront is the migration of health professionals to countries that offer more lucrative opportunities, like those in western Europe. To combat this ‘‘brain drain’’, already back in 1984, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) created a training programme in which healthcare professionals from Africa conducted the bulk of their research in their own countries. However, the model was only partly successful. Several years ago, we assessed the preconditions for the renewal of Sida support for research and research training activities in the region. Based on our work to develop a critical mass of beneficial research capacity in the countries of sub-Saharan Africa, this article suggests several recommendations to both donors and governments that have broad application for general health research issues in the region.


Author(s):  
Peter R. Dawes ◽  
Bjørn Thomassen ◽  
T.I. Hauge Andersson

NOTE: This article was published in a former series of GEUS Bulletin. Please use the original series name when citing this article, for example: Dawes, P. R., Thomassen, B., & Andersson, T. H. (2000). A new volcanic province: evidence from glacial erratics in western North Greenland. Geology of Greenland Survey Bulletin, 186, 35-41. https://doi.org/10.34194/ggub.v186.5213 _______________ Mapping and regional geological studies in northern Greenland were carried out during the project Kane Basin 1999 (see Dawes et al. 2000, this volume). During ore geological studies in Washington Land by one of us (B.T.), finds of erratics of banded iron formation (BIF) directed special attention to the till, glaciofluvial and fluvial sediments. This led to the discovery that in certain parts of Daugaard-Jensen Land and Washington Land volcanic rocks form a common component of the surficial deposits, with particularly colourful, red porphyries catching the eye. The presence of BIF is interesting but not altogether unexpected since BIF erratics have been reported from southern Hall Land just to the north-east (Kelly & Bennike 1992) and such rocks crop out in the Precambrian shield of North-West Greenland to the south (Fig. 1; Dawes 1991). On the other hand, the presence of volcanic erratics was unexpected and stimulated the work reported on here.


Author(s):  
Henrik Rasmussen ◽  
Lars Frimodt Pedersen

NOTE: This article was published in a former series of GEUS Bulletin. Please use the original series name when citing this article, for example: Rasmussen, H., & Frimodt Pedersen, L. (1999). Stratigraphy, structure and geochemistry of Archaean supracrustal rocks from Oqaatsut and Naajaat Qaqqaat, north-east Disko Bugt, West Greenland. Geology of Greenland Survey Bulletin, 181, 65-78. https://doi.org/10.34194/ggub.v181.5114 _______________ Two Archaean supracrustal sequences in the area north-east of Disko Bugt, c. 1950 and c. 800 m in thickness, are dominated by pelitic and semipelitic mica schists, interlayered with basic metavolcanic rocks. A polymict conglomerate occurs locally at the base of one of the sequences. One of the supracrustal sequences has undergone four phases of deformation; the other three phases. In both sequences an early phase, now represented by isoclinal folds, was followed by north-west-directed thrusting. A penetrative deformation represented by upright to steeply inclined folds is only recognised in one of the sequences. Steep, brittle N–S and NW–SE striking faults transect all rock units including late stage dolerites and lamprophyres. Investigation of major- and trace-element geochemistry based on discrimination diagrams for tectonic setting suggests that both metasediments and metavolcanic rocks were deposited in an environment similar to a modern back-arc setting.


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