Occupational Therapy News OTnews November 2019 | Page 35

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT FEATURE
On a personal level, the MRes has been an amazing opportunity
and the journey has been enormously rewarding and exciting. Both
my MRes supervisors have continued to support me; my academic
supervisor, Dr Carol Kelly, was the first to suggest I consider a
career in research and Dr Jayne Martlew, head of neuropsychology
at The Walton Centre, has always been a source of inspiration.
My colleagues at The Walton Centre have nominated me for
a number of awards; I won the ‘Bright Ideas Research Award’ at
the 2016 staff awards and was a finalist in the category ‘Research
Student of the Year’ at the North West Coast Research and
Innovation Awards 2018.
Before starting my MRes I had never been to a conference,
now I have presented posters, facilitated posters, presentations
and, mostly recently, held a seminar at this year’s RCOT annual
conference.
Research is not always easy and throws a number of challenges
at you. Negotiating ethics applications can be difficult, especially if
you are unfamiliar with the processes and what is required, and I
therefore recommend you have people to support you with this.
You do have to make sacrifices, especially with regards your
time, which can lead to feelings of guilt when you are studying
instead of being with family or friends and vice versa.
Imposter syndrome was something I had only heard of before
my MRes, but now I have to work hard to control my worries
about my abilities. Building your own resilience is a big part of the
research journey.
The rewards however far outweigh the negatives. The MRes
has provided me with the opportunity to work collaboratively with
patients who truly are the greatest research buddies.
I have developed skills that have led to me moving on to new
exciting roles. It has reconnected me with occupational therapy
theory and I have also discovered the world of social media, which
has connected me with lots of amazing occupational therapists
and researchers; in some cases I have had the pleasure of meeting
them in person.
My top tips to any occupational therapists wanting to be
more actively involved in research is to get to know your trust’s
research and development department, and let them know you are
interested in research. Make sure you take your students down and
introduce them too.
Familiarise yourself with your local research organisations,
such as the new NIHR Applied Research Collaborations, they can
provide numerous opportunities.
Consider setting up an AHP Research and Innovation
Committee – we use this to feed into the trust’s research strategy.
Join the Twitter community and attend conferences, both are
valuable sources of inspiration and support.
Finally, build a strong community around you who will help you
on your research journey.
References
Benedictus MR, Spikman JM and van der Naalt J (2010) Cognitive and
behavioral impairment in traumatic brain injury related to outcome and
return to work. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 91(9):
1436-1441
National Audit Office (2010) Major trauma care in England. UK: Stationery
Office Limited
Sinclair E, Radford K, Grant M and Terry J (2014) Developing stroke-
specific vocational rehabilitation: a soft systems analysis of current
service provision. Disability and Rehabilitation, 36(5): 409-417
Sleat G and Willett K (2010) Evolution of trauma care in the UK: Current
developments and future expectations. Injury, 42(8): 838-840
Turner-Stokes L (ed) (2003) Rehabilitation following acquired brain injury:
national clinical guidelines. London: Royal College of Physicians, British
Society of Rehabilitation Medicine
Suzanne Simpson, MND Psychological Wellbeing and Social
Support Advisor/MECC Lead, The Walton Centre NHS
Foundation Trust, email: Suzanne.Simpson@thewaltoncentre.
nhs.uk
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