Academic Clinical Lecturer in Vascular Surgery - Department of Cardiovascular Sciences - 81741A[...]

Position Details

Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, School of Medical Sciences, College of Medicine and Health

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £43,455 to £73,506

Grade: Clinical

Full Time, Fixed Term contract up to 4 years or CCT date, whichever is sooner

Closing date: 6th August 2025

Background

The University of Birmingham is at the forefront of cardiovascular research, supported by substantial funding from prestigious organisations such as the British Heart Foundation (BHF) and the Medical Research Council (MRC). The BHF alone has committed over £1 billion to cardiovascular research across the UK, with significant investments in Birmingham’s research initiatives aimed at understanding, preventing, and treating cardiovascular diseases. Additionally, the MRC provides considerable funding to support innovative cardiovascular research, contributing to the development of new treatments and improving patient outcomes.

The trainee will be part of the research environment, which brings together expertise across various disciplines including Medicine, Biology, Engineering, and Data Science. The University is a key player in major national and international collaborations, further enhancing its research capacity and impact.

This cutting-edge research environment is facilitated by Birmingham Health Partners (BHP), a strategic alliance that includes the University of Birmingham, Aston University, five major NHS partners, and the West Midlands Academic Health Science Network, and Big Data projects including the West Midland Secure Data Environment (WM SDE) and Research Data UK (RDUK). BHP’s unique ecosystem supports translational cardiovascular research, combining health data, an established local health system, academic excellence, and extensive clinical trials and prospective observational cohort studies capability (Birmingham Clinical Trials Unit; Birmingham Surgical Trials Consortium – BiSTC; Birmingham Centre for Observational and Prospective Studies – BiCOPS). This collaborative framework ensures that trainees will have access to state-of-the-art facilities and will contribute to pioneering research that addresses some of the most pressing challenges in cardiovascular health.

Close collaboration with scientists from the Department of Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, Department of Inflammation and Ageing, Department of Cancer and Genomics, and the Department of Applied Health Research offers exceptional opportunities for developing research projects in vascular biology, novel therapies, and biomarkers to address critical needs in cardiovascular disease.

The multidisciplinary, inter-institute group, including Prof Georgios Gkoutos, Prof Andreas Karwath,Dr Mark Thomas,Mr Maciej Juszczak,andProf Elizabeth Sapey,provides robust support for projects involving big data and Artificial Intelligence (AI), including Natural Language Processing, Computer Vision, Machine Learning, and Deep Learning. The team’s current projects focus on the early detection and management of aortic disease, encompassing acute aortic syndromes, aneurysmal disease, and occlusive disease.

The Department of Cardiovascular Sciences is an internationally renowned centre for basic and translational research in vascular biology. Trainees will have the opportunity to work alongside a multidisciplinary team, including Prof Alok Tiwari, Mr Maciej Juszczak,Prof Asif Iqbal, Prof Steve Watson, Prof Ed Rainger, Prof Roy Bicknell, on projects exploring ischaemia-reperfusion injury, novel biomarkers, and therapeutic targets in cardiovascular disease.

The Department of Inflammation and Ageing offers extensive expertise in the mechanistic study of ageing using well-established experimental models, led by Professor Andy Clark, Professor Simon W. Jones, and Dr Thomas Jackson. The group also supports structural imaging and complex body composition analysis, with contributions from Mr Maciej Juszczak. Clinical research within this institute spans various themes in perioperative medicine, including prehabilitation, frailty, postoperative delirium, and cognitive impairment, under the guidance of Prof Fang Gao-Smith, Prof Babu Naidu, and Mr Maciej Juszczak.

Ongoing projects on cognitive impairment in patients with aortic disease, led by Mr Maciej Juszczak (Department of Inflammation and Ageing ) and Professor Ali Mazaheri (School of Psychology), are expanding and would welcome individuals with an interest in this area. A close collaboration with the Department of Cancer and Genomics (Prof Jason Parsons) and the School of Computer Science (Hamid Dehghani) will further support a trainee investigating multiple aspects of cognitive decline in patients undergoing endovascular surgery.

These Institutes and research themes have excellent track record of attracting significant funding from MRC, Wellcome Trust, BHF and NIHR.

The trainee will also benefit from access to the West Midlands Research and Innovation Consortium (VARICS), a research collaborative promoting research delivery in the region, and would be expected to play a key role in running the collaborative research.

A key new research infrastructure is the Birmingham Health Innovation Campus (BHIC), the first regional life sciences park, that will allow for catalysing a powerful cluster of health and life science enterprises across the West Midlands. The Precision Health Technologies Accelerator (PHTA) is UoB ’s signature health and life sciences research facility providing incubation, and collaboration space, offering access to clinical research expertise, trials and health data, alongside opportunities to work with academic and clinical opinion leaders.

The Clinical Lecturer will be offered research facilities and support to help establish his/her research in Birmingham. There will be strong encouragement, in common with other research active staff in the College of Medicine and Health, for the clinical lecturer to obtain funding for his/her research activities during the course of the lectureship.

Clinical Programme

The West Midlands Vascular Surgery programme offers a comprehensive surgical education with extensive hands-on operating experience. As one of the largest deaneries in the country, it serves a diverse patient population, allowing post holders to encounter a wide range of vascular conditions, including paediatric and trauma. Over the course of the programme, post holders can expect to cover the full breadth of the vascular surgery curriculum, with opportunities for focused sub-specialist training, depending on their interests.

The programme is designed with flexibility in mind, accommodating the individual progress and stage of the applicant. The post structure will be split between 50% clinical duties and 50% academic research. Clinical rotations are supernumerary and will primarily take place at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust with possible rotations through other Trusts to maximise trainee’s exposure. Training needs and personal development goals will be carefully considered, with options for either rotating in weekly blocks of clinical experience and dedicated research time, or a monthly split between research and clinical duties.

The post holder will also contribute to clinical audit, postgraduate medical education, and management tasks, with strong support from the clinical team for academic pursuits.

Role Summary

The Clinical Lectureship in Vascular Surgery will be based within the College of Medicine and Health, University of Birmingham. The applicant must have experience in the diagnosis and management of patients with vascular disease.

The successful applicant will receive comprehensive training in all aspects of vascular and endovascular surgery and vascular trauma as part of the specialty training. Applicants must have a firm commitment to a career in academic vascular surgery. The research focus will be on clinical aspects of vascular disease, which can be accommodated within the programme through the extensive expertise in the College of Medicine and Health, the scope of which is outlined below. Opportunities will be available to participate and lead in laboratory-based or bioinformatics-based research programmes, as well as multi-centre clinical studies that are either ongoing or under development. Applicants will work closely with Mr Maciej Juszczak (Consultant Vascular Surgeon and Clinical Academic), Mr Matthew Popplewell (Clinical Academic and Consultant Vascular Surgeon) and Professor Alok Tiwari (Consultant Vascular Surgeon and Clinical Academic).

The job plan for the Clinical Lecturer will be set up to protect 50% of the Lecturer\’s time for academic purposes, including academic training, as well as providing maximal clinical experience. The post holder will be expected to attend regular training days as appropriate.

Publications, presentations and grant applications

The post-holder will contribute to a range of ongoing translational and clinical research within the University and aim to publish in high-impact journals. They will also receive help in securing funding towards increasing independence and personal fellowships by the end of the ACL period.

Main Duties

• The post-holder will contribute to a range of ongoing translational and clinical research within the University and aim to publish in high-impact journals.
• The job plan for the Clinical Lecturer will be set up to protect 50% of the Lecturer\’s time for academic purposes, including academic training, as well as providing maximal clinical experience. The post holder will be expected to attend regular training days as appropriate.
• The post holder will support teaching in Vascular Surgery to MBChB students and to deliver occasional specialist lectures on masters and CPD courses.
• The post holder will also contribute to clinical audit, postgraduate medical education, and management tasks, with strong support from the clinical team for academic pursuits.
• The Clinical Lecturer will be offered research facilities and support to help establish his/her research in Birmingham. There will be strong encouragement, in common with other research active staff in the College of Medicine and Health, for the clinical lecturer to obtain funding for his/her research activities during the course of the lectureship.

Person Specification

Essential

Eligibility

• Evidence of achievement of Foundation competences or equivalent.
• Evidence of achievement of Core Surgery competences or equivalent: candidate must be at ST3 or above.
• Must hold a higher degree (MD, PhD or equivalent) in a relevant subject area or be close to completion Evidence of good progress in clinical training and that completion of specialty training* may be accommodated either during or after the 4 year period of the CL post.

Knowledge and Achievements

• Demonstration of acquisition of the level of knowledge and skills necessary for the achievement of Foundation and clinical (matched to the entry level) competencies or equivalent.
• Demonstration of the potential for scientific independence and the ability to lead a research team.
• Potential to become a leader in chosen field.

Educational and Personal aspects

• Demonstration of understanding, and commitment to, an academic career.
• Indication of medium and long-term career goals.
• Demonstration of educational reasons for applying for the Clinical Lectureship Programme.

Professional Skills

• Evidence of team working skills.
• Evidence of leadership potential.

Desirable

Eligibility

• Evidence of commitment to specialty.
• Intercalated honours degree and/or additional qualifications e.g. MSc etc.

Knowledge and Achievements

• Knowledge of the centre hosting the research and how this is best placed to support the research, education and training needs.
• Prizes or distinctions.
• Presentation of work at a national or international meeting.
• Significant publications in peer reviewed journals.

Informal enquiries to Maciej Juszczak, email: m.juszczak@bham.ac.uk and Professor Alok Tiwari, email: a.tiwari@bham.ac.uk

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