Clinical Research Associate (2)

Salary: £36,962 to £46,404  per annum

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits. We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

Closing Date: 08 January 2024

The Role

We are pleased to advertise two 3-year fixed-term Clinical Research Associate positions available for enthusiastic and highly motivated individuals from any clinical discipline, wishing to complete a PhD.

The successful applicants will join the AGE Research Group at Newcastle University; an interdisciplinary team with a focus on improving lives through world-class research in ageing, sarcopenia, and multiple long-term conditions which is led by Professor Avan Aihie Sayer, Director of the NIHR Newcastle Biomedical Research Centre (BRC).  

The posts are funded by the NIHR Newcastle BRC, and the successful applicants will become members of the Ageing, Sarcopenia and Multimorbidity theme (ASM).  This BRC theme builds on our internationally recognised research on ageing and involves working across academic disciplines and clinical specialties in partnership with patients and the public.

Both positions will involve working with other members of the ASM theme to undertake projects aligned with our research programmes.  These programmes, which share the vision of enabling a step-change in translational ageing research that will deliver significant health benefits for older people, focus on:

Programme 1: developing novel ageing, sarcopenia and multimorbidity patient cohorts
Programme 2: building an experimental ageing medicine platform.  

Both projects will provide a comprehensive training in translational research and enable the successful candidates to gain a range of transferable research skills and experience in the design, development, and delivery of an observational and/or intervention study. 

Specific details of the projects will be developed in collaboration with the successful applicants, depending on their background and interests, but are likely to include:

Programme 1: collecting and analysing data from the MASS Lifecourse study, a unique resource which includes deep phenotyping of muscle in ~200 adults aged 18 to 85 years.  Work within this programme will provide excellent opportunities to gain skills in epidemiology, physiology, and clinical research.

Programme 2: planning, managing, and delivering early-phase trials for novel interventions to treat sarcopenia, as part of an innovative sarcopenia platform trial. This will provide a comprehensive training in trial management and delivery of clinical studies including drug trials.

Applications are invited from UK Registered Clinicians from any discipline with a current, valid registration with a relevant UK professional licensing body (General Medical Council, Nursing and Midwifery Council, or equivalent for other professions).

The successful candidates will be required to undertake in-person patient-facing activity, which may include invasive procedures (for example muscle biopsy and venepuncture), and so having appropriate occupational health clearance for these activities would be beneficial, where appropriate.

These posts are fixed term for a period of 3 years.  

For informal enquiries contact: age.resources@newcastle.ac.uk

Find out more:

AGE Research Group: research.ncl.ac.uk/ageresearchgroup/

Newcastle NIHR Biomedical Research Centre: www.newcastlebrc.nihr.ac.uk/

Faculty of Medical Sciences: www.ncl.ac.uk/medical-sciences/

Newcastle University Research Institutes: www.ncl.ac.uk/medical-sciences/research/institutes/

Key Accountabilities

• Work in collaboration with academic supervisors to design, undertake and deliver a research project aligned with the overall aims of one of the research programmes within the Ageing, Sarcopenia and Multimorbidity Theme, commensurate with the standards required to complete a PhD

• Although working under the general guidance of an academic or Principal Investigator, the postholder will contribute ideas, including enhancements to the technical or methodological aspects of their studies, thus providing substantial 'added value' to the research of the group

• Review published literature and synthesise research findings to identify the need for and scope for further investigations

• Develop and carry out a specified project using appropriate techniques and equipment

• Ensure that their research project is developed in close collaboration with relevant patient and public partners

• Determine appropriate methodologies for research, with advice and support where required

• Commit to following all necessary processes and procedures to submit a PhD thesis within the 3-year period

• Contribute to the writing up of research for publication and dissemination, either through seminar and conference presentations or through publications

• Present research findings, either at conferences or through publications in reputable outlets appropriate to the discipline

• Contribute to grant applications submitted by others and in time develop own research objectives and proposals for funding

• Work with support staff and, on occasions, with undergraduate and taught postgraduate students, and interact intellectually with other academic members of the Institute

• Develop an awareness of University structures, policies and procedures and relevant issues in the higher education, research, social and political environment

• Provide guidance, where necessary, to other staff and students and provide advice to staff and students in analysis techniques and good practice

• To identify, recruit, consent, collect data, update databases and resolve queries for a range of clinical research studies under the guidance of the study chief investigator and principal investigators

The Person

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Commitment to developing a research project on ageing, sarcopenia or multimorbidity.
• High level of analytical and problem-solving capability.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Able to communicate complex information with clarity and to encourage the commitment of others.
• Willing to develop and rapidly acquire research skills and draw upon existing transferable skills.
• Experience or awareness of the academic research environment.
• Able to prioritise and manage workload using own initiative as required.
• Clinical experience with patients in a hospital or community care setting.

Desirable

• Experience of delivering patient-facing clinical research

• Awareness of the principles of public and patient involvement and engagement

Attributes and Behaviour

• Willing to embrace and apply a Team Science approach.
• Excellent organizational and time management skills.
• Innovative, flexible, and collaborative in approach.
• Able to work well both independently and as part of a multidisciplinary team.

Qualifications

• First degree in a relevant clinical subject (e.g., MBBS, Nursing, Physiotherapy)
• Current Good Clinical Practice certification
• Current, valid GMC registration with relevant UK professional licensing body (General Medical Council, Nursing and Midwifery Council, or equivalent for other professions)
   

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.  As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.

We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society.  We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent.  We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.

At Newcastle University we hold a silver Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality.  We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC.  We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.

In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe.