CYP Potential PhD Projects

Potential PhD student topics 

Theme 1: Optimising outcomes in paediatric acute, emergency, and critical care  

1. Muscle function changes in children during and after critical illness (Paul Comfort and Lyvonne Tume)  

2. Development and validation of a nutrition risk score for critically ill children (Lyvonne Tume) 

3. RCT of improved therapeutic environment by noise and light reduction intervention in the PICU (Lyvonne Tume) 

4. Does somatic NIRS predict earlier risk of NEC in pre- and post-operative cardiac neonates on PICU? (Lyvonne Tume) 

5. Screening for sepsis in children (Andrew Rowland) 

• Development and validation of a clinical prediction tool to predict the likelihood of sepsis in children 

• Development and validation of a clinical prediction tool to predict the likelihood of sepsis in children 

6. Identification by emergency department nurses of children presenting with masked critical illness (Andrew Rowland, Lyvonne Tume) 

• Establishing the sub-conscious factors that prompt senior nurses in children’s emergency departments to identify children as being of high-level concern when physiological measures fail to do so: making implicit judgement explicit 

7. Sudden and unexpected death in childhood 

• Determining the impact of a sudden and unexpected death in childhood joint agency response service 

• Determining the impact of a sudden and unexpected death in childhood joint agency response service 

8. Primary care leading to admission to hospital of children 

• Development and testing of a clinical prediction model to predict the likelihood of admission to hospital of children seen in primary care 

Theme 2: Improving CYP mental health outcomes 

1. Mental health and wellbeing in school settings 

• e.g., Retrospective evaluation of implementation and longitudinal effects of mental health initiatives in schools (Sue McAndrew, Celeste Foster & Eve Allen) 

• Developing tools to increase teaching staff capability re: participation strategies with Children and young people (Eve Allen) 

2. CYP Mental Health Interventions 

• e.g., Developing and testing digital wearable technology to help young people who self-harm (Celeste Foster and Daniela Ghio) 

3. Developing tools to enable professionals to assess and promote mental health outcomes for CYP 

• e.g., Investigating the impact reflective practice groups for inpatient nursing staff on CYP mental health outcomes (Celeste Foster) 

• e.g., Investigating the impact reflective practice groups for inpatient nursing staff on CYP mental health outcomes (Celeste Foster) 

• e.g., Investigating the impact reflective practice groups for inpatient nursing staff on CYP mental health outcomes (Celeste Foster) 

4. Evaluation of a children’s advocacy centre on mental health outcomes 

• e.g., Impact evaluation of the introduction of a children’s advocacy centre/service in Greater Manchester on mental health outcomes for service users (Andrew Rowland, Sue McAndrew) 

5. Investigating factors that affect CYP Mental Health 

• e.g., Supporting the mental health of refugee and asylum seeker young people and their families within schools and communities (Transdisciplinary approaches) (Eve Allen, Sue McAndrew and Eunice Ayodeji) 

Theme 3: Preventing and responding to child abuse 

1. ChildSafe UK 

• Design, piloting and evaluation of the introduction of a novel ChildSafe UK programme in a community in Greater Manchester (Donna Peach) 

Theme 4: Child empowerment and advocacy centre 

1. From Cambodia to the UK: lessons to be learned from work in South East Asia that can be translated for application in the UK (Andrew Rowland) 

2. Design, implementation and evaluation of a children’s advocacy centre 

• Designing and piloting the introduction of a children’s advocacy centre in Greater Manchester 

• Designing and piloting the introduction of a children’s advocacy centre in Greater Manchester