Post Type: PhD Studentship (Funded) | Faculty/PSG: Health Sciences | Division/Prof Service: Health Sciences | Section: Health Sciences | Location: Highfield Campus | Closing Date: 27 May 2013 |
The Centre on the Developing Child published research identifying that care provided during pregnancy and early years (to aged 5), is influential in development of stable foundations for long-term health, learning and behaviour of a child, and wellbeing of a family. UK Government policy, based upon the Every Child Matters Framework, promotes provision of care through the Healthy Child Programme (HCP), to ensure identification of the most vulnerable children and families who require additional support to address inequalities in care.
Children born into vulnerable families are more likely to have poorer health outcomes and reduced quality of life. The term vulnerable is not finite, especially when used in the context of health and social care. However ‘vulnerability’ as identified within various UK Guidance, includes families whose circumstances mean that their ability to provide for a developing child may be inhibited, or may directly harm a child. Examples include those families with no parent in work, in poor quality housing, where a parent has mental health problems, longstanding illness or disability, as well as direct concerns as substance misuse, which could directly harm a child’s health.
The Healthy Child Programme should sit at the centre of services for families, acting as guide for referral to wider support according to individual needs. A range of health professionals are involved in providing care to a family including midwife, health visitor, GP, family nurse practitioner, and social worker. They are in a position to establish trusting relationships, can subsequently assist in lifestyle choices and education at a time when families may be most open to change. Sure Start Centres are at the heart of HCP, to promote integrated services for families within the local community setting. They aim to increased service availability and uptake, helping families improve their own health outcomes through primary health care and direct contact with health professional services; but also through secondary means such as education provision and support.
With the increasing number of health care professionals caring for such families, there needs to be cohesive and effective multi-professional dynamics to ensure appropriate care. The quality of health and social care is dependent upon how effectively professionals interact and work together, as it is through the range of skills and knowledge of these professionals that adequate care can be given to fulfil the complex needs of an individual (Barrett et al., 2006). Analysis of local data compared to national statistics on public health outcomes such as immunization rates, breastfeeding rates, smoking in pregnancy, teenage pregnancy rates identified Portsmouth was an area where attention is needed. Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust (2011) ‘Nurturing Maternity Service Development’ scheme has prioritized additional care for vulnerable women with complex social, medical and obstetric needs to improve their outcomes. This proposal aims to look at the current care provision for the identified vulnerable families, and in particular at inter-professional working to facilitate seamless care, including development and analysis of inter-professional education and service development activity.
The Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southampton working in partnership with Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust, is offering a Clinical Academic Doctoral Fellowship for a qualified midwife. The successful candidate will spend two days per week as a Band 5 Registered Midwife in the maternity service, Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust and 3 days per week working on the PhD research study. You will join a thriving and expanding group of Clinical Academic Doctoral Fellows based at the Clinical Academic Facility, Southampton General Hospital for the academic component of the Fellowship.
The Fellowship is for 4 years will begin September 2013.
You will be supported by an annual £14,000 stipend and an additional sum of £800 to support additional training and development costs during the Fellowship.
This is an exciting opportunity and will enable aspiring individuals to combine clinical practice with a research role, working across the University and Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust. The successful candidate will work with their nominated clinical mentor and a Faculty of Health Sciences academic mentor in a tri-partite arrangement to develop their clinical academic role in both practice and University settings.
It is essential for you to have successfully achieved a 2:1, and desirable to have a 1st class honours degree.
Interviews: Southampton, 10th June 2013.
Funding Notes
You must be a midwife registered with the UK Nursing and Midwifery Council.
When applying, choose "MPhil Health Sciences".
You MUST specify which fellowship you are applying for, stating the project code in "Area of Research" in "Topic of research proposed”.
"HS13" is the project code for "How can effective multi-professional working promote that the appropriate provision of care is given to vulnerable families in Portsmouth?".
We will be unable to progress your application without this code.
PLEASE NOTE: You are not required to submit a research proposal.
Please see our FAQs here for further information.
References
Department of Health, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2012a, 2012b,
Department for Education and Skills, 2004,
Daniel, 2010,
NSPCC, 2007,
National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence 2010a.
To apply please click here