About the course

The Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences’ primary research focus is on the prevention, early diagnosis and management of common illness in general practice - particularly childhood infection, cancer, heart disease and stroke.

Applicants are strongly advised to visit the Medical Sciences Graduate School website to help them identify the most suitable course and supervisors.

The department has recently developed a new stream of clinical research which seeks to improve the conceptual understanding and use of monitoring in a number of chronic diseases. The department has an international reputation for developing innovative methods of research synthesis and research use to ensure that research findings change clinical practice.

Admission to the MSc by Research is highly competitive. The MSc by Research programme will provide you with strong training in the environment and a broad range of research areas and supervisor expertise. Previous research topics include:

• Cardiovascular disease risk factors, weight and the strategies to tackle future risk in school-aged children
• Developing paediatric quality indicators for UK general practice
• The evaluation and expansion of methodologies relating to the reporting and analyses of intermediate test results: improving the clinical utility of diagnostic research
• Mycoplasma pneumoniae and Bordetella pertussis in patients with persistent cough in primary care
• Incidence, prevention and treatment of acute coronary events in the elderly
• Infertility in the internet age: how women and men find information and support during treatment for infertility and sub-fertility
• Predictors of virologic treatment failure to Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Therapy (HAART) for HIV infection in the Western Cape Province, South Africa
• A primary care based intervention to improve participation in the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme
• Predicting serious bacterial infections in children in primary health care