Summary
Date Posted: Friday, April 28, 2023 , Base Salary: Not Disclosed

JOB DETAILS:

The prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is increasing rapidly in Africa. During pregnancy, NCDs, such as gestational diabetes and hypertension/pre-eclampsia, adversely affect maternal and fetal outcomes, and can lead to long-term consequences in both the mother and offspring. Therefore, we need to use new digital tools and sensors to better understand these interactions and help develop interventions to mitigate these.
The proposed project will combine new technologies to assess lifestyle behaviours (including physical activity) and biological markers (including heart rate, blood pressure, blood glucose levels, and markers of infection) during pregnancy, and assess their impacts on maternal and baby outcomes. These outcomes will include risk of gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia, birthweight, neonatal and childhood hospital admissions.
The student will deploy wearable technologies (including smartwatches, and continuous glucose monitoring devices) on a cohort of pregnant women to capture data, and will build analysis pipelines to interrogate the cohort and unlock new interventions. This wellcharacterised mother-baby cohort will provide a unique resource for follow-up studies to investigate future, long-term effects, including childhood obesity and maternal risk of NCDs.
This project will capitalise on the on-going birth cohort led by Professor Annettee Nakimuli, based at Kawempe National Referral Hospital (one of the busiest maternity hospitals in Africa, with approximately 100 births daily).
Personal Skills and Qualifications: We are looking for an enthusiastic, highly motivated and intelligent student, with skills and knowledge evidenced through a track record of achievement. For the project described, we would also require evidence of expertise in at least two of the following subject areas, namely NCD and infectious disease epidemiology, community medicine, digital technologies, medical devices and sensors and/or m-health.
Supervisory team

• Professor Moffat Nyirenda, MRC/UVRI and LSHTM Uganda Research Unit
• Professor Frances Mair, University of Glasgow
• Professor Annettee Nakimuli, Makerere University Kampala
• Professor Jonathan Cooper, University of Glasgow
• Dr Harriet Mpairwe, MRC/UVRI and LSHTM Uganda Research Unit


Job Experience: No Requirements

Work Hours: 8

Level of Education: Associate Degree

Job application procedure

Follow the link below to submit your application.
https://redcap.link/ywbk3773 
A high level of integrity while filling out the form is required and will be considered during shortlisting.
Combine all your application documentation i.e. cover letter, motivation statement (200 words maximum), CV and academic documents into one PDF document. Specify the project you are applying for in the cover letter. The deadline for receiving applications is 29th April 2023, 5:00 pm. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for an interview. Strictly follow the application procedure as failure to do so will lead to automatic disqualification. Only online applications through the link provided will be accepted. You will receive a notification in your email if your application and documentation have been successfully received.

The applications should be addressed to:
The Head of Training and Career Development,
MRC/ UVRI and LSHTM Uganda Research Unit,
P.O. Box, 49,
Entebbe, Uganda.

Consider your application unsuccessful if not contacted within 4 weeks after the closing date. Any form of lobbying at any stage will lead to automatic disqualification. By submitting your personal information, you consent to the MRC/ UVRI and LSHTM Uganda Research Unit holding and using it per its recruitment policy and procedure. The Unit reserves the right to verify documents attached with the relevant awarding institutions to validate their authenticity.
MRC/UVRI and LSHTM Uganda Research Unit is an equal opportunity employer committed to having a diverse workforce and does not ask for money at any stage of recruitment.


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