Many health visitors will be interested in taking up further study to prepare themselves to undertake research activity.
There are many opportunities to learn more about becoming a researcher, some are listed below and others will be added over a period of time.
The important starting point is to be clear about what level of training you are looking for and have some idea about the field of research or research question that you want to investigate.
Most people start by taking a Masters degree and move on to PhD before being able to undertake independent research, you will need to consider:
- What is my research interest?
- Where will research training take me in my career?
- Who can support/supervise me? Do their interests match mine?
- Where in the country can I access the supervision?
- Do I want part time or full time research training?
- What schemes are available to help me?
- What will it cost me? (You might need to think about the costs to your time, workplace, family life etc. as well as financial cost)
- Where can I find research mentorship?
Useful Video Resources
A guide to starting out in clinical academic research (NIHR ARC Wessex)
This is a series of ten films giving advice and tips on becoming a clinical academic. It has been produced by the Enhancing Research Culture Team, including staff from the School of Health Sciences at the University of Southampton, NIHR ARC Wessex and University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust. It has been funded with support from UKRI Research England.
https://vimeo.com/showcase/9710034
Applying for clinical academic fellowships (Queen’s Nursing Institute)
This 1-hour masterclass hosted by QNI’s Community Nursing Research Forum was focused on applying for clinical academic fellowships.
https://vimeo.com/998234389?share=copy
https://qni.org.uk/news-and-events/events/research-masterclass-clinical-academic-fellowships/
Learn about the work of nurse and midwife research champions (NIHR)
Find out more about Nurse and Midwife Research Champions in a series of videos by the NIHR-supported Incubator for Nursing and Midwifery, supported by NHS Research and Development North West.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmA0qkovl2I
NIHR ARC East Midlands: Research training resources
The NIHR ARC East Midlands have put together a number of short research training videos to include the following:
- Introduction to Qualitative Methods
- Introduction to Randomised Controlled Trials
- Introduction to Systematic Reviews
- Academic Writing Skills
- Thematic Analysis
- Publication Bootcamp
- Evaluation Skills
- Focus Groups
- Introduction to Biostatistics
- Grant Writing Skills
