Ageing, Acute and Long Term Conditions Research Group
We aim to work collaboratively with patients, carers and interested staff in local Trusts to:
- understand the needs and experiences of people and carers of those with acute and long-term conditions and those who are ageing
- develop and evaluate evidence-based interventions to prevent and address acute and long-term conditions in line with current NHS and government key priorities.
- research issues concerning those who live with a long-term condition(s), to promote up-to-date service delivery.
Who are we?
Our group members are mostly academic staff at LSBU who are either new to research, Doctoral students, early career researchers (ECRs) or staff with significant responsibility for research (SRRs). Our group is co-chaired by Nicola Thomas and Siobhan McLernon.
What do we do?
We are a friendly and supportive group who meet monthly. Group members have a breadth of experience as nurses, social workers and allied health professionals working in health and social care. Our meetings are usually online via Teams to maximise participation, but we meet face-to-face on Croydon/ Southwark campuses every three months. Our research topics include kidney disease, diabetes, stroke, low back pain and frailty.
Our key research questions
Although research group members tend to focus on their own research topic, the topics have commonality in terms of impact on the individual and the NHS. Our group is developing a research question around frailty (which affects many people who are ageing or living with a long-term condition) and we hope to submit a substantial grant application in 2024.
Stroke
Grant application to the Burdett Trust March 2024 for initiatives that will reduce the prevalence and impact of stroke. The proposed project is a community based mixed method study to explore understanding of modifiable stroke risk factors in young people who are of Black, minority ethnic (BME) heritage and propose an innovative intervention.
Dr Siobhan Mc Lernon is currently an honorary senior research fellow at UCL working on the UCL Young Stroke Systematic Evaluation Study (ULYSSES).
Kidney Care
Professor Nicola Thomas has recently completed a project funded by Kidney Care UK on remote appointments. This Toolkit was developed as a result of the findings.
Low Back Pain
Mark Thomas is currently undertaking his PhD investigating the attitudes and beliefs about manual therapy held by individuals experiencing low back pain.
Xenotransplantation
Daniel Rodger is a PhD student at Birkbeck, University of London exploring attitudes, beliefs, and experiences of xenotransplantation.
Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH)
Kate Davis is currently in her third year of a PhD in Nursing at LSBU, focusing on the clinical validity and acceptability of alternative methods of monitoring for young people with CAH. The proposed research has been reviewed by YES – the Youth Empowerment Squad – at Barts Health NHS Trust,
- Croydon BME Forum
- Public Health Croydon
- LSBU Chiropractic Clinic
- Dr Oleksandra Kovalyova is a member of the All-Ukrainian Association of Preventive and Antiaging Medicine