Research Fellow - Department of Applied Health Sciences Grade 7

Position Details

Department of Applied Health Sciences, School of Health Sciences, College of Medicine and Health

Location:

University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £36,636 to £46,049 with potential progression once in post to £48,822

Grade: 7

Full Time, Fixed Term contract up to February 2027

Closing date: 25th February 2026

Painful Diabetes-related Peripheral Neuropathy (PDPN) affects 20-26% of Diabetes Mellitus patients and is associated with impaired quality of life, insomnia, and high healthcare costs. A clear treatment gap exists for a safe, non-invasive, clinically effective, and cost-effective third-line treatment for PDPN, as at least 50% of patients do not respond to first- or second-line pharmacotherapies recommended by NICE. The Frequency-Modulated Electromagnetic Neural Stimulation (FREMS) trial aims to assess the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of FREMS, a non-invasive electrical pulse treatment, for patients with PDPN who have not responded to standard NICE treatments.

The appointed health economics research fellow will work with the wider research team to evaluate the costs and cost-effectiveness of Frequency-Modulated Electromagnetic Neural Stimulation alongside the trial.

We are looking to appoint an enthusiastic researcher who will assess the costs and cost-effectiveness of Frequency-Modulated Electromagnetic Neural Stimulation, a non-invasive electrical pulse treatment, for patients with PDPN who have not responded to standard NICE treatments. The post-holder will be based in the Health Economics Unit, Department of Applied Health Sciences and will:

• Work within specified research grants and projects and contribute to writing bids
• Operate within area of health economics
• Analyse and interpret research findings and results
• Contribute to generating funding

• To review and critically appraise relevant economic literature
• To identify and collect appropriate resource utilisation data and identify appropriate costs
• To extract relevant data from published economic studies. Such data is likely to include costs, outcomes, assumptions and other parameters
• To estimate costs and conduct an economic evaluation (both model and trial-based)
• Develop research objectives and proposals for own or joint research, with assistance of a mentor if required
• Analyse and interpret data
• Apply knowledge in a way which develops new intellectual understanding
• Disseminate research findings for publication, research seminars etc
• Contribute to developing new models, techniques and methods
• Undertake management/administration arising from research
• Contribute to Departmental/School research-related activities and research-related administration
• Contribute to enterprise, business development and/or public engagement activities of manifest benefit to the College and the University, often under supervision of a project leader
• Present research outputs, including drafting academic publications or parts thereof, for example at seminars and as posters
• Provide guidance, as required, to support staff and any students who may be assisting with the research
• Deal with problems that may affect the achievement of research objectives and deadlines
• To a limited degree, to support the HEU teaching programme, particularly in relation to the Masters programme in Health Economics and Health Policy/Econometrics
• To support any other appropriate activities that will help to achieve the objectives of the Health Economics Unit
• Promotes equality and values diversity acting as a role model and fostering an inclusive working culture.

• A degree in Health Economics
• High level analytical capability
• Ability to communicate complex information clearly
• Fluency in relevant models, techniques or methods and ability to contribute to developing new ones
• Ability to assess resource requirements and use resources effectively
• Experience of using statistical analysis software such as STATA and SPSS
• Understanding of and ability to contribute to broader management/administration processes
• Contribute to the planning and organising of the research programme and/or specific…