Academic Clinical Fellows (ACF) in General Practice at Oxford

ACFs combine specialist or core training with 25% protected research time. These posts are designed to enable doctors to generate a research proposal and obtain external funding for a doctorate. However, doctors who already have a doctorate may also apply. (For generic information about ACFs and other clinical academic posts, see Your Career - Clinical Academic Pathway.) 

The ACF scheme is comprises 12 months of hospital posts and 36 months of combined general practice with research. This gives the equivalent of 12 months full time research without competing clinical commitment across ST3 and ST4, with an additional month within the study leave allowance at either ST1 or ST2 to focus on research skills and project development for ST3/4. Masters level research training is provided by modules from the MSc in Evidence Based Healthcare. ACFs are supported in, and regularly achieve, first author publications in major international journals (e.g. BMJ), national conference presentations, submission of grant applications and PI experience. ACFs will have the opportunity to attend departmental academic seminars, research methodology clinics and academic forums.

Trainee experience is enhanced with mentorship and support independent of direct project supervision provided by the ACF lead Professor Gail Hayward, and ACFs also have their interests represented on the Department’s Graduate Studies Committee.

The Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences is the largest, top-ranked centre for academic primary care in the UK and leads world-class research and training to rethink the way healthcare is delivered in general practice and other primary care settings, both across the UK and globally.

We are a large but friendly and supportive department in which to work.  We operate progressive policies to ensure a facilitative working environment that supports colleagues who wish to work part-time, with family and other caring responsibilities and we are proud to be Athena Swan silver award holders. 

The department includes the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine, an NIHR fully accredited clinical trials unit and hosts the NIHR Community Healthcare MedTech and In vitro Diagnostics Co-operative, the NIHR Oxford and Thames Valley Applied Research Collaboration well as leading the NIHR Oxford BRC themes on obesity, multi-morbidity and long-term conditions, and partnerships for health, wealth, and innovation. We are also part of the successful consortium that was awarded the new Wellcome PhD Programme for Primary Care Clinicians.

Our main focus is on the prevention, early diagnosis and management of common illness. We bring together academics from many different backgrounds to work together to produce benefits for the NHS, for populations and for patients. Our research groups have strong collaborative links into biomedical laboratory science, social science, health economics and statistics, reflecting the requirements for robust impactful applied health research to make primary care fit for future healthcare delivery. We also work closely with the local NHS Foundation Trusts, the Clinical Research Networks and the Integrated Care Systems.