Case study: Midwife hopes to become future south London research leader

A south London midwife believes the NIHR Fellowship Programme is preparing her to become a future research leader.

The NIHR's fellowship programmes support individuals in becoming future health and care research leaders.

Holly Lovell is a Clinical Research Midwife at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust. She began her NIHR Doctoral Fellowship in April last year.

As part of the programme, Holly is leading the REPRESENT study. The study aims to support inclusive recruitment to maternity research. Holly will ensure the research is representative by working in partnership with women from diverse ethnic backgrounds. The NIHR portfolio study will open later this year. Holly said:

"I am on the Doctoral Clinical Academic Research Fellowship. The programme is for Nurses, Midwives and Allied Health Professionals (NMAHPS). These professions are under-represented as researchers. This fellowship is a fantastic opportunity to support the development of clinical academics. I hope this fellowship is my first step in becoming a clinical academic. I would love to go on to become a Consultant Midwife with protected time to continue researching.

"The programme is vital in supporting research-active NMAHPS. I know myself and many others wouldn't be in a financial position to be able to undertake a PhD otherwise. I am happy to chat with anyone interested in applying for future fellowships.

"The REPRESENT study aims for women from all backgrounds to feel confident to take part in research. We intend to do this through producing guidelines or recommendations. I hope this work will help to address ethnic inequalities in maternity care."

The NIHR Doctoral Fellowship is a three-year full-time award. The award supports individuals to do a PhD in applied health or social care research.
Find out more about the Fellowship Programme on the NIHR's website.