Category / Research news

BU researchers: We need your help!

Please help to develop BU policies and initiatives relating to research at BU by completing the  BU Vitae CEDARS survey 2023 (Culture, Employment and Development in Academic Research survey)*.

This is an important survey as it benchmarks BU against the rest of the sector. It will, therefore, help us to identify where we are excelling and where there is room for improvement.

Participating in this study will also influencepolicy. Your input will help us to understand where to focus our efforts and resources – it will give us the data to make the argument for you. (The results of the previous PIRLS and CROS surveys that CEDARS has replaced were used to develop new policies and initiatives, as well as training and development opportunities).

Please complete the CEDARS survey if you are research-active (whether on a full-time, part-time or part-time hourly paid contract). This includes researchers at all stages in your career, those who manage researchers, or are Principal Investigators, or contribute to research by providing professional services for researchers, (i.e. researcher developers, research officers or technical staff).

The survey is running from 20th March to 21st April. Your responses will be anonymous; you will not be identified or identifiable in any published results. It will take approximately 20 minutes to complete the survey. BU Vitae CEDARS survey 2023

If you have any questions regarding the survey, please email Rachel Arnold: rarnold@bournemouth.ac.uk

 

Thank you, the Research Development and Support Team

*CEDARS is a national survey that explores the views and experiences of researchers and those supporting researchers across the UK. It is based on the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers, which aims to create the best culture for researchers to thrive. This survey replaces the previous CROS and PIRLS surveys.

Please find more information here on the ‘Concordat to Support the Careers of Researchers’ and what BU is doing to support researchers.

ERASMUS+ exchange with Nepal

The first half of April I have been in Nepal on the ERASMUS+ exchange with Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences MMIHS).  Apart from teaching and running tutorial and workshops at the host institution the exchange can also include student supervision.  I had the pleasure of offering some support to one of the MMIHS Master of Public Health (MPH) students.  Ms. Binita Dawadi designed an interesting project under the title on factors associated with burnout among nurses in the district of Jhapa (Nepal). She recently complete her research project as part of her dissertation which she subsequently presented as a poster at last week’s Ninth National Summit of Health and Population Scientists in Nepal.  This annual research conference organised by the NHRC (Nepal Health Research Council)  was held in Kathmandu on 11-12 April.

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery & Perinatal Health {CMMPH}

New Delphi study published

Congratulations to Bronwyn Sherriff, Carol Clark, Clare Killingback and Dave Newell.  Their manuscript titled “Musculoskeletal practitioners’ perceptions of contextual factors that may influence chronic low back pain outcomes: a modified Delphi study was recently published in Chiropractic & Manual Therapies  The Delphi study provides initial insights regarding a panel of musculoskeletal practitioners’ attitudes towards contextual factors during chronic low-back pain (LBP) rehabilitation in the UK. If you are interested in their findings, click here: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12998-023-00482-4 or as a PDF: https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1186/s12998-023-00482-4.pdf.   

 

Congratulations and well done!

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen (CMMPH)

BU researchers: We need your help!

Please help to develop BU policies and initiatives relating to research at BU by completing the  BU Vitae CEDARS survey 2023 (Culture, Employment and Development in Academic Research survey)*.

This is an important survey as it benchmarks BU against the rest of the sector. It will, therefore, help us to identify where we are excelling and where there is room for improvement.

Participating in this study will also influencepolicy. Your input will help us to understand where to focus our efforts and resources – it will give us the data to make the argument for you. (The results of the previous PIRLS and CROS surveys that CEDARS has replaced were used to develop new policies and initiatives, as well as training and development opportunities).

Please complete the CEDARS survey if you are research-active (whether on a full-time, part-time or part-time hourly paid contract). This includes researchers at all stages in your career, those who manage researchers, or are Principal Investigators, or contribute to research by providing professional services for researchers, (i.e. researcher developers, research officers or technical staff).

The survey is running from 20th March to 21st April. Your responses will be anonymous; you will not be identified or identifiable in any published results. It will take approximately 20 minutes to complete the survey. BU Vitae CEDARS survey 2023

If you have any questions regarding the survey, please email Rachel Arnold: rarnold@bournemouth.ac.uk

 

Thank you, the Research Development and Support Team

*CEDARS is a national survey that explores the views and experiences of researchers and those supporting researchers across the UK. It is based on the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers, which aims to create the best culture for researchers to thrive. This survey replaces the previous CROS and PIRLS surveys.

Please find more information here on the ‘Concordat to Support the Careers of Researchers’ and what BU is doing to support researchers.

Organisational Development workshops – 17 – 21 April

Please see below for the links to next week’s Organisational Development workshops.

Monday 17th April Line Manager Immigration Clinic
Tuesday 18th April Using Parabilis
Tuesday 18th April Management Essentials: Managing Change
Tuesday 18th April Pay Progression and Promotion Processes For Academics
Wednesday 19th April Management Essentials: Managing Absence
Wednesday 19th April Articulating Excellence in Pay Progression for Professional Support
Wednesday 19th April Pay Progression and Promotion Processes For Academics Women only session
Friday 21st April New Managers @ BU

FHSS PGR Conference – extension to deadline of abstract submission

We are pleased to announce a one-week extension to the date for submission of abstracts, for the inaugural FHSS PGR Conference, which is being held on Tuesday 6th June from 09:30-13:30, in BGB.

 

The revised abstract submission date is Friday 21st April

 

We welcome abstracts for presentations or posters, from all PGRs in FHSS, no matter what stage of your studies you are at, focusing on the conference theme of ‘doing postgraduate research in health and social care’.  Do get in touch with the conference committee at FHSSPGRConferenceCommittee@live.bournemouth.ac.uk if you are unsure and want to discuss your ideas before submitting an abstract.

 

Don’t forget that we welcome the submission of posters that you have presented elsewhere over the last year – please submit a brief abstract, as outlined below.

 

You can submit your abstract by scanning the QR code, or following this link (https://forms.office.com/e/RK7uhNc7LT)

 

Best wishes

Tanya (on behalf of the conference committee)

Successful event with senior policymakers in Nepal

Today, the last day of the Nepalese year 2079, we held a well attended event to discuss the preliminary findings of the interdisciplinary study of the impact of federalisation on health system in the country.  We invited policymakers and politicians from all three levels of government in the country to help the research team to analyse the large amount of high-quality data.  This meeting helped to validate the study results and guide our future capacity building as part of this project.  We were pleasantly surprised by the number who turned up and with their  active engagement!

One of the interesting comments made by the participants was that this was the first time that they had met with staff from differ levels to discuss the working of the system.  In fact, participants expressed that they wanted more opportunities to have this kind of discussions across all three levels of government. The researchers reported both positive and negative developments in the decentralized health system of Nepal.  Positive aspects included, for example, improvements in the availability of resources for health, the construction of new health posts and hospitals, better availability of essential medicines in many places.  We also commented on the positive management of COVID-19, compared to other many countries.  The policymakers from local, provincial and national level largely agreed with our findings and analyses.

This stakeholders’ event is part of the Nepal Federal Health System Project, our major collaborative project examining the consequences for the health system of Nepal’s move to a federal government structure in 2015.  This is a joint project (2020-2024) led by colleagues the University of Sheffield in collaboration with the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health (CMMPH) Bournemouth University, the University of Huddersfield, with two partners in Nepal, namely Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences (MMIHS) and PHASE Nepal.  This longitudinal interdisciplinary study is funded by the UK Health Systems Research Initiative [Grant ref. MR/T023554/1].

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

CMMPH

 

BU signs up to Jisc agreement with the American Psychological Association

BU authors can now publish OA for free in select journals with American Psychological Association. Read on to find out more!

Authors affiliated with UK institutions participating in APA’s Jisc agreement may publish open access in hybrid journals published by APA at no cost to the author, provided that:

  • The article’s corresponding author is affiliated with a participating institution’s UK campus.
  • The article is accepted after August 1, 2022.
  • The article is an original peer-reviewed research article or review article.

All articles under this agreement will be published under the CC-BY copyright license. Upon publication, articles will be made immediately open access.

You can find further information on how to submit an article for consideration and other key information, such as maximum number of articles, here.

As a reminder, BU holds a number of agreements with key publishers, many of which allow you to publish open access for free. You can read more about them here.

If you have any queries, please contact the Open Access team.

BU-UHD 2nd Research Event – May 24-Invite for Abstracts

BU-UHD 2nd Research Event – May 24-Invite for Abstracts

We are delighted to announce that bookings are now open for our 2nd research event: Collaborative Research: A Time For Action!

The BU-UHD partnership exists for the benefit of staff, students, patients, and the local community. This joint event will act as a catalyst for discussion around research collaboration and a perfect opportunity for networking.

To book your tickets, visit:https://atimeforaction.eventbrite.co.uk

The event starts with a keynote presentation from Professor William Rosenburg, newly appointed chair of Wessex Health Partners.

With facilitated discussions on developing future research in health inequalities; workforce and people; sustainable futures; digital futures and medical sciences this event is likely to be of interest to a wide range of BU and NHS staff.

Posters and presentations provide a chance to view and talk about collaborative research already underway.

Light refreshments will be served during the event.

Please, find the Abstract Submission form here: BU- UHD 2nd Research Event May 24 – Abstract Submission Form

All applications to be submitted to BU-UHD Research Steering Committee by 30 April 2023

Via bupartnership@uhd.nhs.uk

 

Dementia research in Nepal

Yesterday (April 11th) Dr. Bibha Simkhada presented key findings from our research project on ‘Cultural practice and policy in dementia care in Nepal’.  She spoke at the ‘Ninth National Summit of Health and Population Scientists in Nepal’.  This annual health summit in Kathmandu is organised by the NHRC (Nepal Health Research Council).  Dr. Simkhada, who is Visiting Faculty in the Faculty of Health & Social Sciences (FHSS), started this work whilst at Bournemouth University, before she moved to the University of Huddersfield to become a Senior Lecturer in Nursing.  This project is a cross-faculty collaboration with Dr. Shanti Shanker in the Department of Psychology.

This qualitative study comprising four face-to-face interviews and four focus groups with carers, health workers and other stakeholders.  The two key conclusion she presented are:

  • Stigma and stereotyping around dementia needs addressing. Nepal needs better policies, guidelines and service provision for people living with dementia and their carers.
  • There is need for inclusion of Dementia/Alzheimer education in undergraduate and postgraduate curricula of nurses, doctors and allied health professionals in Nepal.

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health (CMMPH)

 

Dr Yutaka Matsubayashi receives Academy of Medical Sciences (AMS) Springboard Award to support research

Dr Yutaka Matsubayashi has been named as a recipient of the Academy of Medical Sciences (AMS) Springboard Awards – the first time one has been awarded to a Bournemouth University researcher.

More than 40 Springboard Awards, totalling over £4 million, have been awarded to biomedical and health researchers in their first independent post to help launch their careers.

Dr Matsubayashi, a Lecturer in Systems Biology at BU, has received the grant to support his research investigating the mechanisms that orchestrate basement membrane formation – working towards the invention of future therapies.

The basement membrane is a scaffolding structure that supports almost all animal tissues, and the research has possible clinical applications for many medical conditions caused by basement membrane deficiency – such as kidney failure, skin fragility, and brain haemorrhage.

The grant will be used to employ a research assistant, and a network of collaborators inside and beyond Bournemouth University will also support the work.

The Springboard Awards provide up to £125,000 over two years and a personalised package of career support to help biomedical scientists to launch their research careers.

Dr Suzanne Candy, Director of Biomedical Grants & Policy at the Academy of Medical Sciences, said: “Together with our partners, we are fortunate to be able to support this talented group of researchers doing excellent science. Our strategic ambition is to help create an open and progressive research sector. By investing in these individuals and teams, we are broadening the range of people and disciplines engaged in biomedical and health research, across all regions of the UK, and globally.

“We look forward to supporting our award recipients and seeing how their research has a positive impact on the health of people everywhere.”

#StepForward and become an NHS Research Ethics Committee member

The Health Research Authority are inviting people to #StepForward and become a Research Ethics Committee (REC) member.

REC members meet virtually to review exciting new research studies for some of the biggest challenges in health and social care, including cancer, dementia and COVID-19.

It’s important that committees have insight from different perspectives so that we can all trust their decisions. The HRA are particularly looking for people with no healthcare or research experience.

You’ll be provided with regular training and support and it’s a great opportunity to work with people from a range of backgrounds and learn new skills.

You can find out more here. Alternatively, if you have any questions about being on a REC, please get in touch with Suzy Wignall, Clinical Governance Advisor, and Alternate Vice Chair of the West Midlands – Black Country Research Ethics Committee.

Future of Complex Innovative Trial Design

The latest Faculty of Health & Social Sciences (FHSS) publication on the last day of March is an editorial in the Nepal Journal of  Epidemiology.  This editorial ‘The Promising Future for Complex Innovative Trial Design in Clinical Research’ has as its lead author, FHSS’s Visiting Faculty Dr. Brijesh Sathian.

 

Reference:

  1. Sathian, B., van Teijlingen, E., Banerjee, I., Asim, M., Kabir, R. (2023) The Promising Future for Complex Innovative Trial Design in Clinical Research. Nepal Journal of  Epidemiology, 13(1):1256-1257.

 

Athena SWAN – tell us your views by this Friday

At BU, we are proud of our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion, and to improving the staff experience for all colleagues. We would like your feedback to help us progress our work in this area. 

The Athena SWAN charter is an initiative run by AdvanceHE. It is a framework to support and transform gender equality within higher education (HE) and research. We are proud to have an institutional Athena SWAN bronze award and of our five departments, who hold departmental bronze SWAN awards.  

To inform our ongoing programme of gender equality work and future submissions for Athena SWAN awards, we want to hear your views on the inclusiveness of our culture. Your responses will help us to identify good practice, as well as areas for development. Please complete our survey by 23.59 on Friday 31 March.  

The survey will take 10 minutes to complete. It is open to all BU colleagues and we want to encourage everyone to take the time to share your feedback with us. This will help us get the best understanding possible of what is working well and what we need to address to continue to support all genders of our community equally. The survey refers to gender in broad and inclusive terms, encompassing those who identify as women, men or non-binary. All responses will be anonymous and no data will be used to identify individuals.  

If you are a line manager, please encourage your team to complete the survey, so that we get as many responses as possible. Thank you.