PIHR Researcher support services

Information and resources for Plymouth Institute of Health and Care Research researchers

The Plymouth Institute of Health and Care Research (PIHR) exists in part to support its member researchers and ensure they have the help they need to excel in their research careers.
We do this by working with our partners across the University (including the Faculty of Health Research Support service, Research and Innovation, the Library and Doctoral College) and through a range of activities, including training workshops, resource development and signposting. Whilst these activities will be of particular benefit to our postgraduate research and early career researchers, we recognise that researchers may require support at very different stages of their career. Below you can find links to specific institute, faculty and university level support services, as well as resources for addressing specific research support questions.
For further information on Institute activities please contact: PIHRSupport@plymouth.ac.uk

If you are interested in collaboration opportunities or have a question around the work we do contact us on: PIHRSupport@plymouth.ac.uk

Find funding using Research Professional 

Research Professional is an online database of research funding opportunities and a source of international research policy and practice news, with an email alert service. It provides a summary of significant recent research funding opportunities and approaching deadlines.
PIHR has created its own Research Professional page with key search lists that you can use to find health and care research funding. To access it you will need to enter your University log-in details and create a Research Professional account if you do not have one already.
*Research Professional

Useful researcher resources

Selected research funding sources

Apply for research funding

Support and guidance to help you through the application process.

Internally allocated funding

PIHR has been working with other parts of the University to offer specific small-scale funding for seed-corn projects to University of Plymouth academics. These initiatives include:

  • Health Pump Priming Fund: this provides seed-corn funding for small research projects with the aim that they will subsequently be scaled-up and attract additional external funding. The 2020/21 fund supported 17 such projects and a further 8 projects are currently being funded in the 2022/3 round. The fund has also been supported by the Faculty of Health.

  • SHAP(E)ing Health Collaboration Fund: jointly funded with the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business, this fund supports collaborative research between academics from health and social care backgrounds and those from the arts, humanities and business. Further details can be found here.

  • QR Policy Support Fund: funding from Research England has been used to support a number of projects to help academics better engage with policy-makers. Details of the projects funded in the 2021 can be found here.

In addition, PIHR members have also collaborated with local businesses to receive support from the University's Research and Development Solutions Fund. This fund was established by the University to support businesses through the pandemic providing grants of up to £20,000. Details of the previous round can be found here.

If you have any questions about future internal research funding opportunities please contact PIHRSupport@plymouth.ac.uk

Managing research and managing research data

Applying for ethical approval

All research by staff, research students and taught masters students which involves human subjects and/or human tissue will always require ethical approval by a properly constituted ethics committee.

Public & Patient Involvement (PPI)
It‘s considered good practice to involve members of the public as early as possible in the research design process. Funding public involvement at the grant application stage can be challenging. Below are links to various external resources which could help you with public and patient involvement, either as part of the planning and/or dissemination of research. This includes a repository of PPI training and resources developed by NIHR, as well as guidance from MRC about how to feedback findings to study participants.

Useful Links

Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) group meeting for the Dementia –Person Aligned Care Team (D-PACT) project. D-PACT researchers meet regularly with groups of people with dementia, carers and former carers, to discuss aspects of the project and seek advice and feedback. The PPI groups have worked with researchers to develop a person-centred recruitment approach, develop the D-PACT Dementia Support Worker role and ensure that research materials are accessible and acceptable to people living with dementia. Photo taken by Dr Sarah Griffiths
NIHR Resources for Public Involvement in Research

Repository of resources and training opportunities relating to PPI
Health researchers collaborating with microscope
UK Standards for Public Involvement in Research Website

Find out more about the official standards for public involvement in research and related resources
Community engagement
National Coordinating Centre for Public Engagement

This organisation supports university's with public engagement. The link also provides details of relevant funding sources.
Vector illustration of two profiles of women with speech bubbles inside their heads. Getty image.
Framework on the feedback of health-related findings in research

A Medical Research Council framework document to help researchers design and implement a policy on the feedback of health-related findings to study participants.

Preparing a systematic review (incl. meta-analysis)

Publication preparation guidance

Your guide to the essential considerations when preparing journal publications and handling editorial feedback.

Achieving Research Impact

Ensuring our research findings make a positive impact on people and communities, not least through influencing policy-makers, can be as challenging as it is critical. In early 2021 PIHR funded the ECR Forum for Health-related researchers to organise a series of workshops for both early career and other researchers on engaging policy-makers. Below are links to some of the workshop resources together with other useful impact-related links. These additional links include a policy engagement toolkit developed by our colleagues in the University's Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business. Please note: you will need a UoP login to access some of this content. 

Mentoring for Junior Researchers

The Plymouth Institute of Health and Care Research (PIHR) runs a mentoring programme to support junior researchers in the University of Plymouth's Faculty of Health in the development of their research careers. The benefits for mentees include enhanced confidence, career direction, an expanded network, and a supportive environment to discuss ideas. If you are a junior health researcher within the University's Faculty of Health and would like to find out more please email: fohstaffmentoring@plymouth.ac.uk

PIHR has also set-up some guidance and training resources for mentors and mentees. University of Plymouth staff members can access these using the links below.

 

Early Career Researcher Forum for health-related researchers

The Early Career Researcher Forum supports individuals self-identifying as an early-stage researcher, from PhD student onwards. It is committed to career development, support and training to develop the research leaders of the future.
Health biomedical Getty
 

Researcher reflections

Researchers associated with PIHR reflect on different aspects of their research experience citing key lessons and learning points:

Laptop on table at home (cropped so you can actually see it). Picture by Eli Sommer, Pexels 
Researcher in Residence under Covid: when the residence is home

Debra Westlake describes her experiences as an embedded researcher working from home
Healthcare
Taking the long view on Research Funding

Professor Jonathan Pinkney reflects on the lessons learned through a successful multi-million pound funding bid to NIHR
Professor Eduardo Miranda - Photography by Somewhere up north
Overcoming Disciplinary Barriers: An Interview with a Highly Successful Inter-disciplinary Researcher

Professor Eduardo Miranda talks about the joys and challenges of inter-disciplinary research
 

University support services

 

Postgraduate research opportunities

The University of Plymouth offers a range of postgraduate research degrees across all areas of health research.
The Doctoral College is the hub for all research degree processes – from enquiries and application processes to the award of degrees.
Find out more about the areas in which we supervise postgraduate research at both doctoral and masters levels. Here we offer a flavour of potential topics for your own research project and who to contact to discuss your options.

Postgraduate Research Coordinators

People

 

Continuing Professional Development opportunities

The University offers a range of CPD opportunities to gain new knowledge, skills and behaviours and remain up to date in all areas of your practice.