This new post is to facilitate clinical research in the new Cambridge Centre for Parkinson-Plus disorders. The new centre for Parkinson-Plus brings together leading clinicians, nurses and scientists focussing on the problems faced by "Parkinson-Plus" patients, i.e. with progressive supranuclear palsy, corticobasal syndrome, and motor syndromes associated with frontotemporal dementia. The centre is developing new treatments for movement and behavioural symptoms.
The postholder will support patients during and after diagnosis at the centre's specialist clinics, and on through their research participation. The postholder will take a critical role in a new clinical trial, led from the Cambridge Centre. The phase II trial aims to improve impulsivity and apathy, and determine the safety and tolerability of an oral drug, atomoxetine. The drug has been used before for other conditions, including childhood attention deficit disorder, and in research into Parkinson's disease, but is used here for the first time in Progressive Supranuclear palsy.
The postholder will lead in patient screening, contact, recruitment, consent, assessment participation and support for the trial, working with the central trial coordinator and clinical team, as well as database entry. They will help liaison between patients, carers, health care professionals, researchers and other relevant bodies. The postholder will also work within our group of specialist research nurses in support of related research studies, which have in common their focus on cognition and brain imaging in neurodegenerative disease. Both paper and electronic records are used, with a secure database and web-based systems for data sharing.
The work includes data entry, quality control and data queries, and working directly with patients and families in relation to participation in research. An honorary contract is anticipated, to gain direct experience of dementia and related disorders, through the memory clinics. The postholder will assist with clinical governance and the writing of reports and contribute to pubic engagement activities. The work is based in the academic Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Herchel Smith Building for Brain and Mind Sciences, and embedded in the Memory Clinics of the Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Trust.
The Department has excellent interactions between the Department of Clinical Neurosciences, the Department of Psychiatry and the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, together with NHS Memory services, the Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre and other Investigators within the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre. This post will support and maintain the University's national and international reputation for excellence in clinically relevant research, with long term clinical impact.
Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available until 28 February 2022 in the first instance.
Once an offer of employment has been accepted, the successful candidate will be required to undergo a health assessment and an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check. This appointment also requires a Research Passport application.
We welcome applications from individuals who wish to be considered for part-time working or other flexible working arrangements.
To apply online for this vacancy and to view further information about the role, please visit: http://www.jobs.cam.ac.uk/job/21744.
Closing date: 18 June 2019
Please ensure that you upload a covering letter and CV in the Upload section of the online application. The covering letter should outline how you match the criteria for the post and why you are applying for this role.
Please quote reference ZE19326 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.
