Lived Experience of community members with chronic suppurative otitis media in Zambia and Malawi

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS FOR THE NIHR PHD FELLOWSHIP PROGRAMME BASED AT ZAMBART (ZAMBIA), WITH SUPPORT FROM MALAWI LIVERPOOL WELLCOME PROGRAMME, AND BRIGHTON AND SUSSEX MEDICAL SCHOOL (UK)
Introduction to the PhD fellowship
The PhD programme is structured to provide contextually relevant PhD training to an outstanding African professional /national to be based at Zambart in Zambia.

The PhD fellow will benefit from being part of an excellent research team and a vibrant university setting. This will facilitate personal development; enhanced career opportunities; critical thinking and problems solving spaces; as well as exposure to leaders in global ear and hearing health at Brighton and Sussex Medical School (BSMS, UK) and community engagement at the Malawi Liverpool Wellcome Programme.

The fellow will register their PhD at the University of Zambia. Various training opportunities will be available to the fellow to enable them to make significant career progress during the three years of their fellowship, including a week of funded in-person training in the UK.

Background to lived experience of chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM)
CSOM is characterized by a perforation (hole) of the ear drum and leads not only to hearing loss, but also intermittent or continuous discharge of pus (otorrhoea). Otorrhoea is stigmatizing and precludes use of a conventional hearing aid. Modelling has estimated global prevalence of CSOM of between 65 and 330 million people. CSOM associates with socio-economic deprivation, and high prevalence is reported in Low and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs), typically at 4% of the population or more (10-fold higher than high income countries), with children forming a third of those affected. Furthermore, the higher prevalence in LMICs is dominated by those in socio-economic deprivation within a country.
Our recent review identified a number of factors that influence barriers to access to ear and hearing care in LMICs. In addition, there are very few studies on the lived experiences of individuals with CSOM.

The PhD fellowship

The PhD fellow will use in-depth interviews and thematic analysis to investigate themes of knowledge, attitudes and beliefs, access to care (including ability or willingness to pay), and stigma. The focus of the interviews will be on adults and children living with CSOM in communities in Zambia and Malawi, but will also include caregivers, family and other community members.
This will be the first community-based study of the lived experience of individuals with CSOM. Results will help us to understand how we can tackle CSOM using community-informed and community-based models of care, including self-care. This work will link with the work of other PhD students in Zambia and Malawi, who are exploring community-based management of CSOM.

Eligibility Criteria

Applicants must be nationals of an African country and must be suitably qualified to enter a PhD programme at the University of Zambia. In addition, applicants must have:

1. Master of  Science Degree (MSc) in in any of the following areas: sociology, social anthropology, psychology, public health, health policy, or epidemiology – completed within the last 5 years
2. Experience in both qualitative and quantitative research methods.
3. Experience conducting research on and with community groups.
4. Fluent in English and at least one of the widely spoken Zambian languages is an added advantage.
5. Applicants should be eligible to study or work in Zambia.
6. Experience in research coordination including obtaining ethical approvals, protocol writing and stakeholder engagement.

Application
Interested candidates must submit the following:
1. Completed Application Form
2. Letter of Motivation (maximum 1 page)
3. Supporting Letter from Academic Referee (maximum 1 page)

Closing Date for Applications: October 11, 2024

Please send the filled form together with the letter of motivation and any supporting academic referees to: jobs@zambart.org.zm

The fellowship will cover fees, transport to research sites (air tickets), travel for a training course in Brighton, a stipend for three years and research costs.