OUH healthcare professionals’ research career pathway boosted with new Clinical Lectureships

Four Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) health and care professionals have become the first to be awarded a new Academic Clinical Lectureship, to be based in the Oxford University Clinical Academic Graduate School (OUCAGS).

The new Academic Clinical Lectureship is aimed at providing a clear post-doctoral pathway for nurses, midwives, allied health professionals, healthcare scientists, pharmacy staff and psychologist (NMAHPPs) in Oxford who want to continue their career in academic clinical research. 

The NIHR Biomedical Research Centre: Oxford is funding three of the Clinical Lectureships, while the NIHR Oxford Blood and Transplant Research Unit (BTRU) is funding the other. 

The Oxford BRC is also funding new Academic Training Programme Director to support these roles, and Professor Annina Schmid, a physiotherapist who leads the Neuromusculoskeletal Health and Science Lab, has been appointed to this post.

The four NMAHPPS who have been appointed are:

• Ravi Purohit, an Orthoptist in the Oxford Craniofacial Unit
• Julie Stebbins, a Clinical Scientist in the Oxford Gait Laboratory
• Colin Forde, physiotherapist in orthopaedic trauma
• Elizabeth King, lead physiotherapist in ICU Follow-Up Clinic (funded by the BTRU)

Professor Helen Walthall, OUH Director of Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Professionals Research and Innovation and the Oxford BRC’s Lead for Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Professionals Research Capacity, said: “NMAHPPS play a vital and growing role in delivering high-quality, evidence-based healthcare. But unlike medical doctors, they don’t have a recognised clinical academic pathway, which can limit their ability to pursue a clinical-academic research career.

“Developing clinical academic careers for our NMAHPPS workforce is a key strategic aim for OUH and the Oxford BRC. So, we are excited to be joining forces with OUCAGS to offer these prestigious posts. They fill a gap in research leadership training for NMAHPPS, and we hope that in future this will be seen as an important step towards developing a steady stream NMAHPPS who are confident, independent and successful principal investigators leading their own research groups.”

The new Clinical Lectureships will last for two years, with 50% of the time spent in doing post-doctoral research and 50% in NHS clinical practice at OUH. The Clinical Lecturers will receive tailored support and mentorship from Professor Schmid, as well as experienced University of Oxford researchers. They will develop a post-doctoral research project in one of the departments of the University’s Medical Sciences Division and be supported to produce pilot data to allow them to apply for future fellowships or major grants. 

Professor Dominic Furniss, Director of OUCAGS, said: “We are delighted to welcome the first cohort of Health and Care Professional clinical lecturers to the Oxford University Clinical Academic Graduate School. These first appointments signal our intent to improve the support for clinical academic careers in these underrepresented professional groups. 

“We are pleased to partner with the NIHR BRC and Oxford University Hospitals in this endeavour. Working to improve the training pathways for health and care professional clinical academics is a key strategic target for OUCAGS in the coming years, and we will continue to work closely with our partner organisations.”