Self-care and joint pain in older people
Arthritis Research Campaign National Primary Care Centre
(RPCH 2008-05)
- available from October 2008
The Arthritis Research Campaign National Primary Care Centre, at Keele has a large and dynamic research programme in Pain and Osteoarthritis, underpinned by a wealth of cohort and trial data-sets, with linkage to medical records. The Centre includes a multidisciplinary grouping of clinicians working alongside epidemiologists, statisticians and social scientists, and our funding framework gives us a strong remit to increase research capacity by providing training opportunities and career support for early experience researchers.
The successful candidate would join a diverse and enthusiastic group of postgraduate research students. The Centre runs a programme of both internal and external seminars, as well as journal clubs and in-house training. As well as the University-wide research training programme, training will be provided in relevant techniques as required e.g. multilevel modelling.
There is a paucity of research into the extent and mechanisms of restriction in self-care, which threatens the quality of life of the growing population of older adults. Information on self-care in community-dwelling older adults is fragmented; studies have focused on individual aspects of self-care and there has been very little focus on the combined effect of individual and environmental factors, when exploring potentially identifiable factors to enhance self-care. There have been no studies of community-dwelling adults that have explored the links between self-care restriction and joint pain.
The impetus for this research comes from the observations that (a) self-care disability increases with age, (b) joint pain increases with age and (iii) a biopsychosocial approach might help to further explain the reasons for restricted self-care in community-dwelling older adults with joint pain. The purpose of this study is to describe the population prevalence, onset and persistence and distribution of restricted self-care, and associated factors, in adults aged 50 years and over with specific reference to joint pain and environmental factors. The proposed study will use data collected from one of the three cohorts of older people housed within the North Staffordshire Osteoarthritis Project (NorStOP). A structured series of "mini-analyses" of the NorStOP 6YFUP dataset will form the basis of the main body of the PhD thesis. The outcomes of this programme of work are intended to include: a literature review; papers reporting the substantive findings of the study; recommendations for measuring and future studies on self-care. Supervision for the PhD would be provided by Dr Ross Wilkie and Professor Peter Croft.
Funding is available for three years to cover fees for PhD registration (2008/09 rates - home/EU rates: £3,350) and a research studentship stipend of currently £12,900 per annum for 2008. Non-EU students would be required to pay the balance (currently approximately £8,550 per annum) of the overseas fees themselves.
Applicants should have a good (2:1 or above) first degree with experience of quantitative research methods, (e.g. epidemiology, psychology) and experience of health care research. A Masters degree in a relevant discipline is highly desirable.
Further information
For an informal discussion or to arrange a visit to the Centre, please contact Dr Wilkie on 01782 583927 / r.wilkie@cphc.keele.ac.uk. See also: http://www.keele.ac.uk/gradschool/fundingkeele.htm
Application Process
In order to be considered for a studentship, an application form for PhD study must be completed ("Application Form Postgraduate Research Degrees") plus an additional "Application form for a studentship or bursary" indicating that you wish to apply for this studentship and detailing your suitability for the award - http://www.keele.ac.uk/gradschool/prospectus/
CLOSING DATE - Wednesday 11 June 2008
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