PhD Studentship: EQUIP-IN: Understanding the impact of assistive technologies on carers of older adults with difficulty bathing

The EQUIP-IN research programme and Department of Health and Sciences are delighted to offer this postgraduate research studentship opportunity.

Description

This studentship is funded by the National Institute for Health and Social Research as part of the EQUIP-IN research programme (NIHR208120). The aim of EQUIP-IN is to explore and evaluate social care pathways for the assessment and provision of equipment and minor adaptations for bathing (sometimes known as assistive technologies) for older adults.

As part of our investment in the next generation of academic researchers, we are pleased to offer a linked PhD studentship. The successful candidate will join a collaborative research study (between the University of York, Newcastle University, Northumbria University and Foundations) and will be situated at the University of York as part of a large and diverse postgraduate research community in the Department of Health Sciences.

Research focus

This studentship will focus on the impact of equipment and minor adaptations on carers and supporters (family and friends) of older adults with difficulty bathing. There is little evidence in the literature that combines users’ and carers’ quality of life and the PhD will address that.

People can be personally involved in providing care and can feel directly or indirectly responsible for the preservation of dignity and respect of their cared-for family member (Bressan et al., 2020). If the cost-effectiveness analysis in the EQUIP-IN study focused solely on the individual receiving care, neglecting the impact on the carer’s well-being, we could underestimate the benefits of an intervention. Relevant outcome measures for carers, such as ASCOT-Carer (Batchelder et al., 2019), have been developed and can be combined with measures for people receiving care. The PhD student will work, therefore, alongside the programme research team to establish the impact on carers and the best way to combine outcomes for the person receiving care and the carer when assessing aggregate benefits and costs.

We expect that the PhD will be a mixed-methods study that will include: a systematic review, prospective cohort study and in-depth interviews.

Research aim

This studentship aims to provide a crucial perspective on the trade-offs between the quality of life of bathing equipment and minor adaptation users and their carers.

We anticipate that there will be at least two publications from this PhD studentship.

About EQUIP-IN

When older adults start to have difficulties bathing, difficulties with other activities in the home often follow. Adult social care services provide equipment and minor adaptations for bathing to help individuals to manage getting washed. However, bathing is sometimes considered to be a low priority by adult social care services. There are also differences across services in how equipment and minor adaptations are provided and in the time that people wait for them. We think older adults might lose some of their independence whilst they are waiting, and those who wait longer might use more health and social care services.

Our research explores the process from when an older adult with difficulty bathing contacts the council until their case is closed. We want to identify how this could be made simpler and reduce differences between services. We also want to explore how usable the bathing equipment and minor adaptations are, find out how they help older adults maintain independence, and whether they reduce the need for other health and social care services. Finally, we aim to explore the impact of waiting times on outcomes.

Essential criteria

You will need at least an upper second-class honours (2:1) bachelors degree, and a masters degree (in a relevant social or health sciences subject) or equivalent professional experience.
You will need strong analytical and critical thinking skills, capable of integrating diverse theoretical perspectives.
You have training and/or experience in qualitative and quantitative research methods.
You must demonstrate excellent communication and writing abilities.
You will need to be able to work independently whilst also effectively communicating your research plan and findings to the wider research team.
You will also need to be committed to the principles of equality, diversity and inclusion in research.

Desirable criteria

You can demonstrate an awareness and interest in adult social care research and the role of carers.

About the Department of Health Sciences

This studentship is a collaboration between the Department of Health Sciences (DoHS) and the vibrant and expanding Older Adults’ Social Care Research Centre (OSCAR), situated in the School for Business and Society. The successful candidate will join a vibrant community of postgraduate students in the DoHS, while receiving expert supervision from Dr Phillip Whitehead and Dr Miriam Golding-Day within the OSCAR team.

The DoHS includes over 300 academics, teachers, researchers and support staff engaged in delivering research, professional development, education and training. Our core aim is excellence in research and teaching, while contributing to improving health and healthcare through the application of our research to policy and practice. We are a multidisciplinary department, involving clinicians from a range of health professions including medicine, nursing and midwifery alongside disciplines such as statistics, health economics, health services research, psychology, sociology and epidemiology. Our research is ranked 6th in the UK for research power in the Times Higher Education ranking of the latest REF results with over 92% (REF 2021).

References

Batchelder, L., Malley, J., Burge, P. et al. (2019). Carer social care-related quality of life outcomes: estimating English preference weights for the Adult Social Care Outcomes Toolkit for Carers. Value in Health, 22(12), pp. 1427-1440.

Bressan, V., Visintini, C. and Palese, A. (2020). What do family caregivers of people with dementia need? A mixed‐method systematic review. Health & Social Care in the Community, 28(6), pp. 1942-1960.

Eligibility criteria

Open to UK (home) students. This studentship is not available for part-time or distance learning routes. You cannot apply for this studentship if you are already registered on a PhD programme at the University of York.

How to apply

Complete the Health Sciences PhD application via e-vision and upload the following supporting documents:

your academic CV
your academic transcripts
a personal statement
an outline of your academic interests.

Your personal statement and outline should explain your suitability for the PhD studentship with reference to your academic background and interests, as well as the essential and desirable criteria listed.

In the Funding section of the application, please quote the EQUIP-IN studentship.

The deadline is 17:00 on Monday 25^th May 2026. Applications received after the deadline will not be considered.

Shortlisted applicants will be invited for an interview via Zoom on Tuesday 16^th June 2026. Please indicate in your application if you would have any difficulties attending on this date.

If you are not invited for the interview, it means that your application has not been successful. Please note that we do not offer feedback to applicants who are not invited to the interview.

Terms and conditions

The studentship will pay a yearly stipend of £21,805 (in line with current UKRI rates), with additional funds available for training, personal development and conferences, and a fee waiver at home student fee rates for three years.

Contact

For further information contact Dr Phillip Whitehead phillip.whitehead@york.ac.uk