Download Further Particulars - Jobs at Lancaster University

FURTHER PARTICULARS FOR DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF MEDICAL
STUDIES, SCHOOL OF HEALTH AND MEDICINE
The School of Health and Medicine
The newly formed School is made up of three Divisions – the Division of Health
Research, the Division of Biomedical and Life Sciences and the Division of Medicine
with the objective of optimising teaching and research and providing a clear
University focus for collaborations with the local NHS. The Dean of the School is
Professor Tony Gatrell.
Although the School is newly formed, the University has an established history of
working with the local health care providers.
The Division of Medicine is the newest department in the University and contains the
Centre for Medical Education which is responsible for the delivery of the University
of Liverpool’s undergraduate medical programme as part of a consortium involving
the University of Liverpool, the University of Central Lancashire and the University
of Cumbria. The Head of Division is Professor Anne Garden.
The Division of Medicine forms the base for Lancaster’s activity in undergraduate
and postgraduate medical education and will complement and strengthen universitywide research activity in health and medicine. The Division is in the process of
developing postgraduate programmes including one in medical/clinical education with
CETAD (Centre for Training and Development). Further postgraduate and continuing
professional development courses are planned.
The Division also includes CHICAS (Combining Health Information, Computation
and Statistics), a unit which works closely with colleagues in the NHS and other
health agencies locally, nationally and internationally. The unit has particular
methodological expertise in spatial and spatio-temporal statistical models and
methods, longitudinal data analysis and hierarchical modelling. Recent or current
collaborative partners include NHS clinicians in Lancaster, Preston, Manchester and
London, the Preston and Southampton Public Health Laboratories, the World Health
Organisation, the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation in Brazil and the Johns Hopkins
University School of Public Health in the USA.
The appointee will play a major role in the delivery of the undergraduate curriculum,
in the preparation for independence from the University of Liverpool, in the design
and delivery of Lancaster’s curriculum and in contributing to Medical Education
research. The appointee will also be Admissions Tutor for the undergraduate medical
programme and will be expected to develop widening participation programmes.
They will also contribute to the delivery of a postgraduate programme in Medical
Education.
.
Lancaster University’s strengths in health and medicine
Lancaster University has a substantial portfolio of biomedical and health-related
activity in both teaching and research. One of the University’s long-term strategic
objectives has been to develop this activity and to expand it by forming partnerships
with other providers of medical education and NHS Trusts, and thus to position itself
as a leading provider of medical, biomedical and health education, particularly in
Lancashire and Cumbria.
Other Divisions in the School of Health and Medicine
The Division of Biomedical and Life Sciences (BLS)
BLS currently has 18 members of academic staff whose research interests include
neurodegenerative disorders, carcinogenesis, leukaemogenesis, eye disease,
biochemical toxicology and molecular parasitology as well as fundamental cellular
and physiological processes underlying human disease. There are also links with the
Lancaster Environment Centre focussing on the relationship between disease and the
environment. Postdoctoral researchers and PhD students complete a lively research
atmosphere. Research excellence also underpins the provision of two Masters
programmes, an MSc in Biomedicine (taught plus project) and an MSc in Biomedical
Sciences (by Research). There is also the opportunity to undertake an MD.
The Division for Health Research (DHR)
The Institute for Health Research comprises approximately 45 academic, research and
clinical staff, and 15 administrative and technical support staff. It is also host to a
Department of Health funded research & development support unit for the North
West, the International Observatory on End of Life Care, the newly established
Spectrum Centre for Mental Health Research and the newly developing Centre for
Disability Research.
The Division is multi-disciplinary in its research and teaching. Our interests are in the
perspectives that the social sciences bring to an understanding of health, disability,
illness and the delivery of health and social care. More specific foci of interest
include public health and health inequalities, end of life care, disability studies
(including intellectual disabilities), mental health, clinical psychology, and social care
policy and practice. Teaching and training programmes include face-to-face and
online postgraduate taught programmes in health and social care research, a Doctorate
in Clinical Psychology and postgraduate research supervision.
Health-related activities in other University departments
The Department of Psychology
The Department of Psychology is highly rated, both in research (RAE grade 5) and in
teaching (QAA score 24/24). The department currently specialises in social,
cognitive, developmental and neuropsychology, including neuropsychological
approaches to mental health and psychopharmacology. Recent developments include
the establishment of a Centre for Research in Human Development, and Masters
training in Developmental Psychology that includes courses on developmental
disorders.
Funding sources encompass research councils, medical charities,
pharmaceutical companies and mental health organisations.
Department of Applied Social Science
Applied Social Science is an RAE Grade 5 department whose areas of national and
international expertise include disability, and child care and protection. The BA and
MA in Social Work programmes prioritise inter-professional learning and teaching as
a core component. Teaching in the department was rated 'excellent' at the last QAA
inspection.
Lancaster University Management School (LUMS)
LUMS is graded 6* for research, one of only two management schools in the country
to achieve this. The Management School offers a leadership programme for NHS
Chief Executives and is developing increasing expertise in public sector management.
ESRC Centre for Economic and Social Aspects of Genomics
CESAGen was established in 2002 as a collaboration between the Universities of
Lancaster and Cardiff. It is a multidisciplinary research centre in which the social
sciences and humanities work closely with natural and medical sciences to address
the social, economic and policy aspects of developments in genomics. CESAGen’s
main objective is to work with genomic science and at the same time clarify the
human (social and economic) factors which shape these natural knowledges.
Engaging and communicating with the public is an important part of the Centre’s
work, as there is considerable national and international attention to these issues.
The researchers undertake a programme of public engagement as well as feeding
their research into policy circles. The Centre is funded by the Economic and Social
Research Council (ESRC) as part of the Genomics Network.
Lancaster University’s collaboration with the University of Liverpool
Lancaster University was a partner in the University of Liverpool’s bids for additional
medical student numbers in 1999 and 2001, which resulted in 90 new places.
Lancaster’s role was to provide Special Study Modules and opportunities for
intercalated Masters degrees in areas of the sciences, social sciences, statistics and
management with relevance and application in the medical curriculum. Lancaster has
distinctive research and teaching strengths in these areas which complement the
strengths of Liverpool. The University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust was
also a partner in these bids, and has worked with Liverpool over the last few years to
establish increasing numbers of high quality practice placements in its hospitals in
Lancaster, Barrow and Kendal, and the community in the Morecambe Bay area
The Cumbria and Lancashire Medical and Dental Consortium (consisting of the
University of Liverpool, Lancaster University, University of Cumbria (then St
Martin’s College) and the University of Central Lancashire) was successful in its bid
to HEFCE and the Department of Health to expand undergraduate medical education
in Cumbria and North Lancashire. The University of Liverpool was awarded an
additional 50 places from September 2006 for students to study the full five years in
the region, with Lancaster University as their academic base. These students are
admitted to a discrete route following the Liverpool MBChB programme, with their
clinical experience based in the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust
and in North Lancashire Primary Care Trust. The bid was conceived in response to
the Review of higher education provision in Cumbria (the Fender Report, 2003) as a
way of developing the provision of undergraduate medical education in Cumbria and
North Lancashire, which in turn will address NHS recruitment and retention problems
in the area (as locally trained medical graduates often settle where they trained).
The students are based on Lancaster University campus, where specifically provided
facilities include a Clinical Anatomy Learning Centre. A Clinical Skills Centre is
provided at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary. The University of Central Lancashire and
the University of Cumbria deliver Special Study Modules (SSMs) in their specialist
areas, and contribute to teaching in several innovative ways.
For an informal discussion about the post, please contact Professor Anne Garden,
Head of Division of Medicine (tel +44 (0)1524 593383, email
[email protected])