Living with disabilities, household conditions and COVID-19: a Scottish population-based study using linked administrative data

Studentship opportunity

This studentship is funded by the ESRC through the Scottish Graduate School of Social Science (SGSSS)

Institution

University of Glasgow

Pathway

Health, Families, Relationships and Demographic Change

Studentship

Steers

Mode of study

Full-time / Part-time

Application deadline

4pm, 14 April 2022

4pm, 13 April 2023

Project details

Identifying population groups at high risk of severe COVID-19 health outcomes is crucial to target appropriate public health interventions, including vaccination programmes, now and in the future. People with intellectual disabilities are at considerably increased risk of severe COVID-19 outcomes, including hospitalisations and death, but the transmission routes of such risks within households, congregate care and residential care settings remain unclear.

People with intellectual, developmental and physical disabilities may experience greater COVID-19 risks due to existing health, social and economic inequalities, compounding both the exposure and susceptibility to COVID-19 viral infections and severe outcomes. Increased COVID-19 risks may be linked to disabled people experiencing greater difficulties in understanding and/or complying with social distancing measures. Greater vulnerability to COVID-19 outcomes may also arise from higher rates of co-morbidities, including hypertension, diabetes, chronic heart disease and conditions relating to respiratory and immune systems. In addition, disabled people are more likely to live in residential or other congregate care settings, with close contacts with caregivers, health professionals and other residents, increasing the risks of transmission of COVID-19 infections.

This studentship aims to assess the role played by household conditions in COVID-19 infection risks and progression to severe COVID-19 outcomes among people with intellectual and physical disabilities in Scotland. COVID-19 risks will be estimated using survival models applied to an unprecedented national data collection covering the period between 1 March 2020 and 30 June 2021. Using record linkage across multiple sources, the data collection combines: (a) individual self-reported information on disability status and other socioeconomic variables from 2011 Census; (b) innovative residential information derived from Ordnance Survey and (c) electronic health records from Public Health Scotland’s COVID-19 Research Database, including information on laboratory testing, hospitalisations and mortality, as well as primary care data on pre-existing health conditions.

First Supervisor: Professor Nick Bailey, University of Glasgow

About the University

The student will be based within the UKRI ESRC-funded Scottish Centre for Administrative Data Research (SCADR), a consortium of Scottish Universities, focused on research harnessing the power and potential of linked administrative data. SCADR is part of a UK-wide infrastructure, the Administrative Data Research UK, promoting administrative data research for public good. SCADR provides an outstanding base for developing as a researcher in this field. PhD students are encouraged to participate fully in Centre activities, attending research seminars as well as researchers’ network symposiums and training events. They will have opportunities to make strong connections with and be able to draw on the support of a diverse, collegiate team. They will be encouraged to present their work at Centre seminars as well as external events and conferences.

The studentship will be based within the Urban Studies subject, which is part of the School of Social and Political Sciences. Urban Studies is the leading centre for urban and social policy research in the UK, providing a highly research active environment. In addition, the studentship will have strong links with the Scottish Learning Disabilities Observatory, funded by Scottish Government, and based within the School of Health and Wellbeing at the University of Glasgow. There will be opportunities to contribute to research into the health inequalities of people with intellectual and physical disabilities, with relevance for both policy and practice.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria:

Applicants will have a first degree (undergraduate) at 2:1 or above in an appropriate discipline including, but not limited to: social sciences, statistics, or health-related discipline (e.g. nursing).
Applicants can have a Masters degree in similar disciplines, however this is not a requirement.
Applicants will be able to demonstrate quantitative research skills appropriate to their level of qualification.
Applicants will have a demonstrable interest and appreciation of the barriers faced by people with disabilities and the challenges of using administrative data.
Applicants can study part-time or full-time.

Funding

As per guidance published by UKRI in October 2020, a maximum of 30% of all studentships awarded can be made to international students, with the remaining 70% going to home students.

Residential Criteria

To be classed as a home student, applicants must meet the following criteria:

Be a UK national (meeting residency requirements), or
Have settled status, or
Have pre-settled status (meeting residency requirements), or
Have indefinite leave to remain or enter.

If you do not meet the criteria above, you will be classed as an international student. To establish if you would be classed as a home student, please see pages 4 and 5 of the UKRI eligibility guidance here.

As per guidance published by UKRI in October 2020, a maximum of 30% of all studentships awarded can be made to international students, of which SGSSS has now awarded for the 2021/22 round of studentship awards. As such, this opportunity is only open to home students.

Residential Criteria

To be classed as a home student, applicants must meet the following criteria:

Be a UK national (meeting residency requirements), or
Have settled status, or
Have pre-settled status (meeting residency requirements), or
Have indefinite leave to remain or enter.

If you do not meet the criteria above, you will be classed as an international student and will not be eligible to apply. To establish if you would be classed as a home student, please see pages 4 and 5 of the UKRI eligibility guidance here.

Award details

The scholarship is available as a +3 (3 year PhD) or a 1+3 (Masters year and 3 year PhD) studentship depending on prior research training. This will be assessed as part of the recruitment process, however you can access guidance here to help you decide on which to apply for. The programme will commence in October 2023. The full ESRC studentship package includes, as advised by ESRC:

An annual maintenance grant (stipend)
Fees at the standard institutional home rate
Students can also draw on a pooled Research Training Support Grant (RTSG)

Other information

The studentship is linked to a wider study investigating socioeconomic, household and environmental risk factors for COVID-19 in Scotland, established as part of the Scottish Centre for Administrative Data Research (SCADR), and in response to a request from the Scottish Government’s Chief Statistical Officer to inform the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The studentship has the following aims:

To develop measures of household living arrangements using residential information from health records linked to Ordnance Survey data and assess the extent of change from Census records 9-10 years previously.
To assess the role played by household living arrangements in the transmission of COVID-19 infection risks and progression to severe COVID-19 outcomes among people with self-reported intellectual and physical disabilities.
To understand the changes in COVID-19 health outcomes related to intellectual and physical disabilities by age group and over the course of the pandemic.

The studentship provides opportunities to work on a novel data collection, combining Census data with household identifiers derived from Ordnance Survey and administrative health records from Public Health Scotland. The comparison with Census records will help to validate the household composition measures based on Ordnance Survey data which will contribute to improve the ability to identify households within administrative data. There are additional opportunities to develop descriptive statistical analysis and apply regression modelling techniques, such as survival analysis, to estimate the risk of adverse COVID-19 outcomes for people with intellectual and physical disabilities living in larger households or congregate care settings.

How to apply

Applicants must register on SGSSS Apply, completing their Equal Opportunities data.
Applicants must apply via SGSSS Apply, uploading the following documentation:

- Microsoft Word application form (converted to PDF prior to upload)
- Academic transcripts
- Academic prizes
- Referee information
- CV

Please Note:

This is not an application to the relevant University, this is an application for SGSSS (ESRC) funding.
Students do not need a Masters/PhD offer from the relevant University before they can apply for funding, i.e. this studentship.
If successful in obtaining the SGSSS (ESRC) studentship, students can only start the funded studentship once they have an unconditional Masters/PhD degree offer from the relevant University. It is your responsibility to find out the University’s application process, including when you need to secure your offer, as SGSSS plays no role in this process.

This studentship opportunity will open for applications on 9th June.

Selection process

Applications will be ranked by an internal institutional selection panel, and you will be notified if you have been shortlisted for interview on or around 28 April 2023. Interviews will take place on Thursday 4th May 2023 and Friday 5th May 2023.

This studentship award is subject to the successful candidate securing admission to a PhD programme within the University of Glasgow. The successful candidate will be invited to apply for admission to the relevant PhD programme.

Contact details

Name

SGSSS Team

Email

team@sgsss.ac.uk

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Scottish Graduate School of Social Science

Scottish Graduate School of Social Science

Studentship opportunity