King’s Improvement Science Patient and Public Involvement Co-ordinator

The post will be based in the Centre for Implementation Science (CIS). The Centre is home to a team of expert implementation and improvement science researchers, including health economists and statisticians. This team investigates how best to ‘implement’ evidence-based practice and clinical research within health services in south London, nationally and internationally. The team studies the role of healthcare professionals, managers, commissioners of health services and policymakers as well as organisational structures and processes to try to understand why health services don’t always offer the safest, most effective treatments and ways of working. CIS is based in the Department of Health Service & Population Research (HSPR) whose main goal is to conduct world-leading research and education using the social and health sciences to better understand and to improve health outcomes, systems, and care, both locally and globally, particularly in disadvantaged and marginalised populations.

The post-holder will bring together their lived experience of accessing health and/or social care services with research and project management skills to coordinate patient and public involvement (PPI) for King’s Improvement Science (KIS).

KIS is a King’s Health Partners funded applied research and evaluation programme, hosted within the Centre for Implementation Science (CIS) at King’s College London.

This part-time post is a job-share and the post-holder will work closely and collaboratively with the existing KIS PPI Co-ordinator. The post-holder will work with members of the KIS team, members of the public, and staff in partner organisations, to embed the involvement of public members within KIS projects. The post-holder will also be involved in research activities including the planning, delivery and dissemination of research and evaluation projects.

Further information about King’s Improvement Science can be accessed via: www.kingsimprovementscience.org

Further information about the Centre for Implementation Science can be accessed via: www.kcl.ac.uk/research/cis

This post will be offered on a part-time (50%FTE) fixed-term contract until 31/03/2025.

This post allows for some flexibility in working hours and patterns. The post holder will be expected to work from our offices in Denmark Hill, south London for around 40-60% of their time, and will be able to work remotely from home for the remainder of their time if they wish to do so.

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

1.           Training in research methods including data collection and data analysis skills via an undergraduate degree OR equivalent research experience

2.           Personal experience of accessing or having accessed health and/or social care services (personal experiences do not need to be disclosed, we are interested in how applicants would use their own lived experiences to inform their work)

3.           Experience of liaising with patients / service users / carers / the public and coordinating their involvement in projects or activities

4.           Demonstrable interest in evaluation of health and social care services, quality improvement and improvement and implementation sciences

5.           Demonstrable understanding of accessibility requirements, inclusive involvement practices, sensitivity to different ways of working, and structural barriers to involvement

6.           Excellent interpersonal and communication skills with proven ability to develop and maintain collaborative relationships both within and across organisational boundaries

7.           Good working knowledge of Microsoft Office suite, including proficiency in using Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Ability to conduct work meetings virtually using Microsoft Teams and Zoom

8.           Excellent organisation and time-management skills with the ability to manage a varied workload, comfortable with changing agendas and re-prioritisation of workloads whilst meeting performance targets and milestones

Desirable criteria

1.           Experience of working in health or social care provider organisations or within a higher education institution, for example as a lived experience worker or expert by experience

2.           An understanding of the ethics of involving patients / service users, carers and the public in research and why this is important

3.           Understanding of the communities and health and social care systems in the areas served by the King’s Health Partners NHS Trusts; willingness to build relationships in the local area

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the next page after you click “Apply Now”. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King's.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’   pages.

We are not able to offer sponsorship for candidates who do not currently possess the right to work in the UK.

  This post is subject to Disclosure and Barring Service clearance.