DPhil Supervision

I have supervised DPhil and MSC graduates for the last 18 years. At the moment I supervise 4 DPhil projects looking at biomarkers associated with healthy ageing, prediction models to identify children with serious bacterial infection, the use of tests in Paediatric care, and how to improve the uptake of Clinical Prediction rules in Clinical Practice.

My  primary research program focuses on monitoring long-term conditions, meta-analysis methods, methodology for studying infectious diseases in children, and assessing complex interventions. 

News, Media & BLOGS

"Unpacking the Black Box"

My main activity is as Director of the Statistics group in the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences (NDPCHS) which I joined in 2002. I am involved in a number of research activities within the department; however my main focus is the study of Monitoring for the management of long-term conditions (e.g. Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, etc).

I have overseen the development of one of the strongest methodological/statistical groups in the UK (across all clinical areas) with a particular emphasis on Monitoring, with my group achieving national and international recognition [NIHR Progress Report 2008/09-Delivering Health Research]. As part of this, I am the Statistical director of our fully accredited Clinical Trials Unit (only 55 units have received full accreditation in the UK).

I sit on a range of national and international panels and boards that influence healthcare policy at different levels (funding boards, steering groups, data monitoring boards, etc.).  I am also a Statistical Editor of the BMJ (since 2011) and was a member of the NIHR Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Commissioning board until 2012, joining in 2007 as Associate Member becoming a full Board Member in 2009. 

I am also Director of Research Methodologies in the Centre for Evidence Based Medicine (CEBM) as well a fellow at St Hugh’s college Oxford.

Current Grants 

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

NIHR Programme grant for applied research: Monitoring Long Term Conditions in Primary Care: 01/01/2014 -  31.12.2018

NIHR HTA: Optimal strategies for monitoring lipid levels in patients at risk or with cardiovascular diseases: best marker for monitoring and cost-effectiveness of different monitoring frequencies: 01/01/12 - 30/04/2014

co-applicant

NIHR Programme grant for applied research. The early use of Antibiotics for at Risk Children with Influenza in Primary care (the ARCHIE programme); 01/11/2013 - 31/10/2018

NIHR HTA. Benefits of Aldosterone Receptor Antagonism in Chronic Kidney Disease (BARACK D) Trial; 01/09/2013 - 31/03/2019

NIHR Programme grant for applied research. Optimising the diagnosis and management of hypertension in primary care through self monitoring of blood pressure. 01/02/2012 - 31/01/2017

NIHR. Improving Early Recognition of serious illness in children in primary care (CDF). 01/11/11 - 31/10/2016

NIHR HTA. An open randomised study of autoinflation in school age children (4-11 years) with otitis media with effusion (OME) in primary care: 01/09/11 - 31/08/2014 

NIHR Programme grant for applied research. Examining the role of online patient experience.01/02/2010 - 31/01/2015

Department of Health. Cochrane Tobacco Addiction review group costs. 01/04/2010 - 31/03/2015