Assistant Psychologist/Research Assistant

A Vacancy at Northumbria Healthcare - NHCT Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust.

Working with an experienced research team, the post-holder will have a central role in delivering a National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) funded, two-year, co-production study, of the experience of people in Northumberland living with persistent physical symptoms (PPS).

The study is being hosted by Northumbria Healthcare NHS Trust in partnership with Northumbria University and Healthwatch Northumberland.

The study aims to better understand the complex and contextual aspects of PPS, and draw on multiple sources of expertise to improve available support and the way services work together. Key stakeholders engaged in this study include primary and secondary care, commissioning bodies, local authority, voluntary sector and academic organisations.

We require a research assistant with demonstrated interest and skills in community engagement and involvement, project delivery, relevant social science research methods, and an appreciation of the health and social care context.

Please note we reserve the right to close the advert early if a suitable amount of applicants is reached.

The post holder will work closely with internal and external stakeholders to facilitate the delivery of this project. The post holder will be involved in setting up the research project and will assume day-to-day responsibility for managing the research tasks and activities assigned to them. The post holder will centrally support the team with data collection, collation, interpretation and dissemination tasks.

The successful candidate will have a relevant degree in Psychology or other relevant health or social science, with evidence of interest and experience in relevant research methods and psychological and social phenomena.

There is an expectation that the post-holder will be prepared and able to work flexibly and travel as required, to attend local and regional events, based around the needs and preferences of community members across central Northumberland.

We manage three major locality hospitals at North Tyneside, Wansbeck and Hexham, plus a number of smaller community hospitals and clinics from Tynemouth to Berwick on Tweed, covering one of the largest geographical areas of any NHS trust in the country. Leading in innovation and quality opening a state of the art Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital, the first of its kind in England. Do you want to work in one of the best performing NHS organisations in England? Work in an organisation that supports its staff and focuses on staff experience as much as it does the experience of its patients? You can live and breathe in an area that has the cleanest air, cost effective living, great nightlife, some of the best schools with a wealth of history available on your doorstep. Sound too good to be true? Well it isn't, this is what you get when you work for Northumbria Healthcare, this is the Northumbria Way! Please read applicant guidance notes before submitting your application.

Key Duties Include:

1. Conducting community-based interviews and focus groups.
2. Assisting in co-production workshops, with service providers, people living in the communities involved, and lay participants.
3. Contributing to qualitative data storage and interpretation.
4. Summarising and communicating findings, to various audiences.
5. Other responsibilities will include other public engagement activities, evidence synthesis, and providing regular progress reports.

This advert closes on Tuesday 8 Apr 2025.

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