Joseph Loades is a Musculoskeletal First Contact Practitioner working in a primary care setting. His clinical and research interests lie in the effective management of musculoskeletal and fheumatic conditions.
During my Centre for Clinical and Care Research (CCR) internship, I registered on the National Institute for Health and care Research (NIHR) Associate Principal Investigator scheme. This opportunity allowed me to contribute to a research project delivered by University of Salford focusing on evaluating a bespoke physiotherapy intervention for chronic musculoskeletal neck pain. During this time, I undertook the following key activities:
- Ethics training: I completed the NIHR Good Clinical Practice training, ensuring our study met the highest ethical standards.
- Outcome measures: I established and tested reliable and valid outcome measures for the study.
- Biomechanical EMG protocol: I developed and tested a biomechanical EMG protocol for a future low back pain study.
- Patient and public involvement and engagement (PPIE): I engaged with a PPIE group, incorporating their feedback to strengthen our measurement protocol and lay a solid foundation for a future feasibility study.
- Patient recruitment: I successfully screened and recruited a diverse group of patients, enriching our study sample.
- Cognitive muscular therapy (CMT): I completed a CMT training course and delivered this intervention in a training and development study for low back pain.
- Funding application: Currently, I am drafting a compelling application for the NIHR Pre-Application Support Fund to secure essential resources for our project’s continuation.
Bespoke
Throughout my internship, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to receive outstanding support from the CCR team which has been invaluable both before and during my internship. Being placed within a research team that focuses on areas of clinical interest has been a significant advantage. Additionally, I was provided with a bespoke work plan for the six-month internship period, which allowed me to gain experience and knowledge across a broad range of research processes. This structured plan gave me clear goals and direction, which provided me with experience to fulfil the Associate PI Scheme checklist.
Challenges
Like any journey, my internship had its challenges. One notable challenge was drafting an application for an NIHR funding pathway. I quickly realised that these applications can be very time-consuming and uncertain. Fortunately, I received excellent guidance from my supervisors at NCA and the University of Salford, which helped me to decide to postpone this application until the next round of funding.
Next steps
Looking ahead, I am currently applying for the Pre-Application Support Fund through NIHR to continue developing my research career. This fund will provide me with the opportunity to further develop my research skills by gaining experience in independent research and leading projects. It will also give me the time needed to develop a strong application for an NIHR Pre-Doctoral Clinical Academic Fellowship (PCAF). This is a crucial step in my commitment to a clinical academic career within the remit of NIHR.
This internship has been a transformative experience for me. I would encourage any clinicians who want to gain to insight into this route to apply to future internships. I am excited about the future possibilities in my research career.