London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Job Title:
Associate Professor in Epidemiology – UK-PHRST
Department:
Department of Infectious Disease & Epidemiology (IDE)
Faculty:
Epidemiology and Population Health (EPH)
Location:
Keppel Street
**FTE:**1.0
**Grade:**G8
Accountable to: Professor Gwenda Hughes, Deputy Director for Research, UK-PHRST
Job Summary: The postholder will lead a team of epidemiologists within the UK Public Health Rapid Support Team (UK-PHRST) at LSHTM.
The postholder will develop and lead a strategy for epidemiology research supporting outbreak response for the UK-PHRST, manage new and innovative research projects and provide research expertise across the programme. They will also support the development of epidemiologists in programme eligible countries to ensure effective preparedness and response for future epidemics/pandemics.
The post-holder should expect to travel overseas frequently on behalf of the UK-PHRST to build strategic partnerships and oversee research and capacity development projects in Low and Middle-Income Countries. As a member of the Core Deployable Team, the post holder should be available to be deployed to support outbreak response within 48 hours’ notice for approximately two deployments per year.
General Information
The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) is renowned for its research, postgraduate studies and continuing education in public and global health.
Our mission is to improve health and health equity in the UK and worldwide; working in partnership to achieve excellence in public and global health research, education and translation of knowledge into policy and practice.
We embrace and value the diversity of our staff and student population and seek to promote equity, diversity and inclusion as essential elements in contribution to improving health worldwide. We believe that when people feel respected and included, they can be more creative, successful, and happier at work. While we have more work to do, we are committed to building an inclusive workplace, a community that everyone feels a part of, which is safe, respectful, supportive and enables all to reach their full potential.
History
Founded in 1899 at the London Docks, LSHTM is now based in Bloomsbury, where it has two main sites at Keppel Street and Tavistock Place, and additional sites in The Gambia and Uganda. Today, our staff, students and alumni work in government, academia, international agencies and health services across the world.
Research
Research income has grown to more than £180 million per year from national and international funding sources including UK government and research councils, the European Union, the Wellcome Trust, Gates Foundation and other philanthropic sources.
Our diverse research talents, skills and experience underpin our position as a leader in public and global health. These range from the molecular to the global, the theoretical to the applied, the analytical to the political. Our staff are conducting research in more than 100 countries.
Staff community
We have 3,300 staff based all around the world with core hubs in London and at the MRC Units in The Gambia and Uganda, which joined LSHTM in February 2018. Our outstanding, diverse and committed staff make an impact where it is most needed – deploying research in real time in response to crises, developing innovative programmes for major health threats, or training the next generations of public and global health leaders and researchers.
Partnerships
Working in partnership is central to achieving our mission. Our strategic collaborations in the UK and across high-, middle- and low-income countries deliver health and socioeconomic benefits across the world, especially in the most disadvantaged communities.
LSHTM is also a member of the M8 Alliance of Academic Health Centers, Universities and National Academies, the Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region, and the Consortium of Universities for Global Health.
Education
We deliver research-led educational programmes to future health leaders, managers and researchers across the world. We have more than 1,200 face-to-face Master’s and Doctoral students, 3,000 studying by distance learning, and 1,000 each year on short courses and continuous professional development. Our free online courses are studied by more than 270,000 participants globally.
Excellence in research and education
We perform strongly in various global university league tables. In the ShanghaiRanking’s Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2020 we placed 3rd in public health (1st in the UK). In the 2020 CWTS Leiden Ranking LSHTM is ranked the UK’s top university for the proportion of academic research with women listed as authors, and third in Europe for publishing open access research.
In the US News Best Global Universities Ranking 2021, we ranked 3rd in the world for public, environmental & occupational health, 4th in the world for infectious diseases, 11th in the world for social sciences & public health, and 12th best University in the UK overall. We ranked 27th for medicine in the 2019 QS World University Rankings.
In 2017, the inaugural Center for World University Rankings by Subject placed LSHTM first in the world for tropical medicine research, second for parasitology and seventh for infectious diseases, public, environment and occupational health, and social sciences and biomedical.
LSHTM was named University of the Year 2016 by Times Higher Education and awarded a Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education in 2017 in recognition of our response to the 2014 Ebola epidemic in West Africa. LSHTM does not appear in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings as universities are excluded if they do not teach undergraduates.
We seek to foster and sustain a creative and supportive working environment based upon an ethos of respect and rigorous scientific enquiry. We embrace and value the diversity of our staff and student population and seek to promote equality as an essential element in contribution to improving health worldwide.
LSHTM is one of around 20 specialist institutions that receive institution specific funding from the Office for Students (OfS). This funding recognises the additional costs that LSHTM incurs because of its unique range of teaching, specialist facilities, and the scale of its contributions to national and international agencies.
Faculty Information
Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health
The Faculty of Epidemiology & Population Health (EPH) houses a large group of epidemiologists, demographers, statisticians and nutritionists working on issues of major public health importance in the UK and globally. EPH has approximately 400 staff members organised into four research departments:
- Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology
- Department of Medical Statistics
- Department of Non-communicable Disease Epidemiology
- Department of Population Health
The Faculty has a teaching programme consisting of ten MSc courses: Epidemiology, Demography and Health, Medical Statistics, Public Health in Developing Countries (run jointly with the Faculties of Infectious & Tropical Diseases and Public Health & Policy), Nutrition for Global Health, Reproductive & Sexual Health Research, Veterinary Epidemiology (run jointly with the Royal Veterinary College), Global Mental Health (run jointly with Kings College London – Institute of Psychiatry) and the Distance Learning courses in Epidemiology and Clinical Trials. The Faculty also has approximately 120 research students studying for an MPhil, PhD or DrPH degree.
The Dean of Faculty is Professor Elizabeth Allen
Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology (IDE)
The Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology conducts research on the epidemiology and control of infectious diseases of public health importance. Work is carried out in low-, middle- and high-income countries, including the United Kingdom, in close collaboration with partners in each country. The Department has groups working on maternal, neonatal and child health; international statistics and epidemiology; vaccines, outbreaks and humanitarian crises; and modelling. Research methods include ecological studies of variations in disease frequency in different populations, observational case-control and cohort studies to define risk factors for disease, randomized controlled trials to evaluate the effectiveness of individual- and community-level interventions, and mathematical models to project the impact of public health interventions.
The Department Head is Professor Mark Jit.
The UK Public Health Rapid Support Team (UK-PHRST)
Launched in 2016, the UK-PHRST is an innovative government-academic partnership funded by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and co-led by UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), with a consortium of academic and implementing partners in the UK and internationally.
It is comprised of a multidisciplinary team of public health professionals and researchers with a novel integrated triple-remit of outbreak response, research and capacity strengthening to prevent and control epidemics of infectious diseases in countries eligible for UK Official Development Assistance (ODA). Both institutes contribute and are responsible for delivery of the UK-PHRST triple mandate across outbreak response, research and capacity strengthening, with LSHTM leading the research programme and UKHSA who lead the outbreak response.
The UK-PHRST has the following objectives:
- support partners in LMICs to prepare for, prevent, detect and respond rapidly to disease outbreaks, with the aim of stopping a public health threat from becoming a health emergency;
- identify research questions with partners and deliver rigorous research with partners that improves the evidence base for best practice in disease outbreak prevention, detection and response in LMICs;
- support the development of in-country capacity for an improved and rapid national response to prepare for, prevent, detect and respond to disease outbreaks.
The UK-PHRST team is comprised of epidemiologists, microbiologists, infection prevention and control experts, social scientists, and in addition to the Director and Deputy Director for research, the core management team. It is underpinned by a cadre of multidisciplinary outbreak-focused research fellows.
UK Health Security Agency
At the United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA) our mission is to provide health security for the nation by protecting from infectious disease and external hazards. We are a trusted source of advice to government and to the public, focusing on reducing inequalities in the way different communities experience and are impacted by infectious disease, environmental hazards, and other threats to health.
Our mission is challenging, innovative and in the spotlight. We will work to ensure our people have the diverse skills, experiences and backgrounds we need to thrive, that our staff are representative of the communities we serve and feel valued and enabled to play their part in delivering our work. Creating our working culture is an ongoing process which we are developing by listening and learning together, hearing and acting upon diverse voices and opinions to develop a common sense of identity and effective ways of working.
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR
The portfolio of duties outlined below will vary in accordance with the detailed expectations of the role and any additional role to which you are formally appointed (attached), all of which may be varied from time to time, and as agreed at your annual Performance and Development Review (PDR).
Job Description
Main Activities and Responsibilities
Knowledge Generation
1. To deliver high quality research & scholarship in your field of study, individually and in collaboration with others, by developing and maintaining a research grant portfolio from good research funders, publishing peer-reviewed outputs, generating and securing (where relevant) intellectual property, and evaluating teaching practice;
2. To participate in doctoral student supervision and examination;
3. To lead and manage research teams and promote and ensure compliance of self and others with good practice in relation to the conduct of research, the ethics policy, inclusivity, and other relevant School policies;
4. To support the development of early-career researchers;
5. To develop and lead a strategy for epidemiological research supporting outbreak response for the UK-PHRST, working closely with the Deputy Director for Research and Senior Epidemiologist at UKHSA;
6. To develop innovative approaches to epidemic/pandemic epidemiological research, strengthening research and capacity development in LMIC countries;
7. To work with the Global Public Health Consultant at UKHSA and other key team members to develop Capacity Development projects related to epidemiology and ensure alignment with the Capacity Development strategy.
Education
1. To deliver high quality, inclusive education and assessment in relation to your specific subject and within the broader area covered by your department and disciplinary field;
2. To contribute to the improvement of the quality and inclusivity of the School’s education, by participating in the development and review of new and updated learning and teaching materials or approaches, and/or improving assessment practices, and/or improving aspects of the student experience;
3. To support educational leadership and management by active participation in Faculty and Programme or curriculum leadership roles, as appropriate, and by collaborating with professional services staff both centrally and in the Faculty office in carrying out relevant administrative processes;
4. To coordinate with the UK-PHRST Senior Epidemiologist at UKHSA to lead and support the UK-PHRST epidemiology team across LSHTM and UKHSA to deliver actions that meet UK-PHRST strategic objectives;
5. To contribute to teaching epidemiological methods in epidemics/pandemics and outbreak response;
6. To lead and support capacity development in epidemiological methods and outbreak response in ODA-eligible countries.
Internal Contribution
1. To demonstrate good internal citizenship by undertaking PDRs and promoting staff development, and by participating in the recruitment, mentoring and support of more junior colleagues as appropriate;
2. To participate in the activities of School committees and undertake a leadership or administrative role at School/Faculty/Department/MRC Unit level, as appropriate;
3. To proactively demonstrate LSHTM’s EDI goals in your work and behaviour;
4. To line manage the epidemiology team based at LSHTM;
5. To contribute to wider strategic plans, discussions and implementation as a senior member of the UK-PHRST team;
6. To be a member of the UK-PHRST Strategic Leadership Team;
7. To deputise for the UK-PHRST’s Deputy Director for Research when required.
External Contribution
1. To demonstrate good external citizenship by linking with and supporting appropriate external organisations;
2. To promote knowledge translation and enterprise by exploiting academic knowledge beyond academia;
3. To deploy overseas to lead or support UK-PHRST outbreak response operations as required.
4. To support epidemiology team members during outbreak deployments, and research and capacity development projects.
Professional Development & Training
1. To keep up-to-date with the latest research/thinking in your academic field and with changes to pedagogic practice within the School and more generally;
2. To undertake and successfully complete the mandatory training required by the School appropriate to the role;
General
All academic staff are free within the law to question and test received wisdom, and put forward new ideas and controversial or unpopular opinions, to enable the School to engage in research and promote learning to the highest possible standards. All staff at LSHTM are also expected to:
1. Act at all times in the School’s best interests;
2. Treat School staff, students and visitors with courtesy and respect at all times;
3. Comply fully with School policies, procedures and administrative processes relevant to the role including when acting as Principal Investigator, accepting academic, managerial, financing and ethical responsibility for a project;
4. Uphold and support the School’s values (as set out in the School Strategy);
5. Act as ambassadors for the School when hosting visitors or attending external events;
The above list of duties is not exclusive or exhaustive and the role holder will be required to undertake such tasks as may reasonably be expected within the scope and grading of the role.
Role descriptions should be regularly reviewed to ensure they are an accurate representation of the role.
Person Specification
This form lists the essential and desirable requirements needed by the post holder to be able to perform the job effectively.
Applicants will be shortlisted solely on the extent to which they meet these requirements.
Essential criteria:
1. A doctoral degree in Epidemiology with a health focus.
2. Expertise in high-quality academic research in epidemics, pandemics and/or outbreak response.
3. Experience of working as an epidemiologist during epidemic response.
4. An ability to demonstrate a clear vision of the strategic direction of UK-PHRST research in epidemiology.
5. A consistent and significant track record of attracting research grant income, including salary recovery, from major research funders (PI, co-PI or leadership within a large proposal such as work-package lead).
6. A track record of contributions as lead and co-author to peer-reviewed outputs, as expected by the subject area/discipline in terms of types and volume of output; significant contributions to at least four outputs within the most recent 5 years that are at least internationally excellent .
7. Proven ability to work independently, as well as collaboratively as part of a research team, including experience of supervising and supporting junior researchers and non-academic staff and proven ability to meet research deadlines.
8. An understanding of the strategies for improving equity and inclusion in research and/or learning and teaching.
9. Some experience of doctoral degree supervision.
10.Proven ability to build collaborative research relationships with external researchers and/or institutions, or industry (where relevant).
11.Evidence of ability to deliver high quality research-informed teaching.
12.Evidence of excellent interpersonal skills, including the ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
13.Experience in applying epidemiological expertise to epidemic/pandemic response e.g. deployment during outbreaks, epidemiological research of biomedical interventions for epidemic response, epidemiology-focussed research to inform epidemic response.
Desirable Criteria
1. Teaching qualification (or Fellow/ Senior Fellow of HEA).
2. Experience of building and leading a research team.
3. Experience of innovation in teaching delivery and assessment and/or senior teaching management such as Programme Director, Exam Board member, Periodic Review panel member.
4. Demonstrable evidence of improving equity and inclusion in research and/or learning and teaching.
5. Experience of engagement with national and/or international research and/or policy advisory bodies.
6. Ability to speak one or more foreign languages, especially French, at a conversational level.
Salary And Conditions Of Appointment
The post is funded by UK Government Overseas Development Aid until 31 March 2025, at 1.0 FTE. The salary will be on the Academic scale, Grade 8 scale in the range £59,040 – £67,763 per annum (inclusive of London Weighting). The post will be subject to the LSHTM terms and conditions of service. Annual leave entitlement is 30 working days per year, pro rata for part time staff. In addition to this there are discretionary “Wellbeing Days”. Membership of the Pension Scheme is available.
How to apply
Applications should be made on-line via our website at EPH-IDE-2022-35 Associate Professor in Epidemiology – UK-PHRST – Jobs at LSHTM. Online applications will be accepted by the automated system until 10pm of the closing date. Any queries regarding application process may be addressed to [email protected].
The supporting statement section should set out how your qualifications, experience and training meet each of the selection criteria. Please provide one or more paragraphs addressing each criterion. The supporting statement is an essential part of the selection process and thus a failure to provide this information will mean that the application will not be considered. An answer to any of the criteria such as “Please see attached CV” will not be considered acceptable.
Please note that if you are shortlisted and are unable to attend on the interview date it may not be possible to offer you an alternative date.