Tommer Spence has been awarded a PhD in Health Sciences for their PhD on ‘The Perceptions and Experiences of Using Internet-Based Testing for Sexually Transmitted Infections’. Tommer was supervised by Frances Griffiths in the Division of Health Sciences and Jonathan Ross.

Kirstie Shearman has been awarded a PhD in Health Sciences for her PhD on ‘Improving Information for Research Participation’. Kirstie was supervised by Heather Draper and Greg Moorlock in the Division of Health Sciences.

Monday 11 July, 12.00pm, GLT3 - Please note change of date

Dr David Gregor-Kumar, the BBC West Midlands Science Correspondent, will be coming to talk to the network. Come along and learn how to speak about your research and teaching on the radio or TV and counteract the under-representation of women scientists who broadcast their findings. Please let Stephanie Smart (s.smart@warwick.ac.uk) know if you are planning on attending for numbers and catering purposes, along with any dietary requirements.

During the Covid-19 pandemic hospice care across the West Midlands fell below the “gold-standard” despite the best efforts of frontline healthcare professionals. This news has been revealed in a report from the end of life charity Marie Curie, based on research from WMS led by Dr John MacArtney. Read the university's press release hereLink opens in a new window and the full report and films explaining the study and findings hereLink opens in a new window.

Following the summer '21 launch of our new Annual Refresher course on Data Protection & Information Security, we have now completed production of a single new Induction course. It will be ready for launch and use by all new employees from 31 January 2022 as part of their mandatory new starter training.

New Induction Training for Data Protection & Information Security launches 31 January 2022 (warwick.ac.uk)

Julia Walsh has been awarded a PhD in Health Sciences for their PhD on ‘Using spontaneously generated online patient experiences to improve healthcare: A case study using Modafinil’. Julia was supervised by Frances Griffiths in the Division of Health Sciences and Jonathan Cave.

Hilda Kabambe has been awarded a PhD in Health Sciences for their PhD on ‘Female sex workers' experiences with access to health care services in Malawi’. Hilda was supervised by Sophie Staniszewska and Kate Seers in the Division of Health Sciences.

Read more about Liz's experience below:

I was awarded the British Empire Medal for two things, firstly the work I did as Staff Covid Swabbing Hub Lead with the Wolverhampton Quality Team, which is part of Black Country and West Birmingham CCG. This involved being day to day operational lead, and also taking a strategic lead on planning and the development of standard operating procedures and policies for staff swabbing. Secondly it was for leading on a Strategy and Retention Plan for General Practice Nursing across the CCG footprint, which was recognised by NHS England and Improvement.

Both of these projects were 100% team effort and couldn't have been achieved without the support of my clinical and non-clinical colleagues (from the CCG, general practice, acute trust and local authority) who worked on everything from policy development and co-design, to swabbing, security and marshaling, to booking patients in, chasing and recording results, to training, organising estate and the supply of equipment and PPE. I'm proud to share the award with them.

We unfortunately didn't win the HSJ Patient Safety Team of the year award but were shortlisted for the work we did around staff and care home swabbing, improving infection prevention procedures with the aim of reducing harm and safeguarding patients.

Congratulations to Dr Lucy Hammond, who has recently achieved recognition as a Principal Fellow of Advance HE. Principal Fellowships are awarded to highly experienced and/or senior staff with wide-ranging academic or academic-related strategic leadership responsibilities in connection with key aspects of teaching and supporting learning.

Congratulations to Helen Nolan for her research publication in leading medical education journal Medical Education. Read it here: Medical Educators’ views and experiences of trigger warnings in teaching sensitive content

Manjula Patel has been awarded a PhD in Health and Social Studies for their PhD on ‘Compassionate Communities Approaches to End of Life Care as a Therapeutic Landscape’. Manjula was supervised by Anne-Marie Slowther and Gillian Hundt in the Division of Health Sciences.

Professor Kate Seers has been conferred the honour of being admitted to the Freedom of The Barbers’ Company by Presentation, “in recognition of her immense contribution to the Company’s Clinical Nursing Scholarship Award programme” starting on 19th July 2021. This is a great honour and only 1% of Freemen join via Presentation (where the Court invites them to join the Company).

Hospice care across the West Midlands has received an exciting boost as WMS researchers have received a quarter of a million pound grant to establish better care for terminally ill patients.

Rachel Spencer (GP Academic Clinical Lecturer with UAPC) has been awarded a highly competitive NIHR Advanced Fellowship. This award is for £850,000 over four years and is the largest funding ever to be handled by Coventry and Rugby CCG.

We are pleased to share news that eight members of the WMS community have secured Fellowships with the University's Institute of Engagement.

BMJ Article

Congratulations to Professor Felicity Boardman who has been made a Foundation Fellow of the Warwick Institute of Engagement.

Congratulations to Professor Sophie Staniszewska who has been made a Foundation Fellow of the Warwick Institute of Engagement. Sophie says becoming a Foundation Fellow creates 'a great link for us and a chance to further embed involvement and engagement in our teaching and research'.

Sci Dev Net (26.11.2020) – ‘COVID-19 control measures choking rural, slum dwellers’. Professor Frances Griffiths, the study’s co-author and a professor at the UK-based Warwick Medical School, tells SciDev.Net that slum dwellers were already disadvantaged by unreliable water supply, poor provision of toilets and makeshift housing in the slum communities and there is a danger of them being deprived further by COVID-19 control restrictions.

Thank you to some MBChB unsung heroes who have been keeping things running by providing large numbers of training sessions to equip teachers in GP, in the community and at WMS for online working; Sue Davies, Catherine Bennett, Imogen Davis, Cath Fenn, Clare Blackburn and Jan Cooper. The wheels would have fallen off without you!

Ines Kander, who has been awarded a PhD in Health Sciences for their PhD on ‘Care Pathways in Traumatic Brain Injury’. Ines was supervised by Diane Playford in the division of Health Sciences and Sudakshina Lahiri

Grant successes

Congratulations to Sophie Staniszewka for her successful grant, Developing high quality commissioning of PPIE in NIHR of £40,698.

Nathan Pearson has been awarded a PhD in Health Sciences for his PhD on ‘Improving the Assessment of Fatigue in Axial Spondyloarthritis: improving patient outcomes’. Nathan was supervised by Kirstie Haywood, Jon Packham and Liz Tutton in the Division of Health Sciences.