Carnegie School of Sport Fees Funded Masters by Research (MRes) A qualitative exploration of the factors that determine progression from Phase III to Phase IV cardiac rehabilitation among underrepresented groups

Funding will consist of the UK full tuition fee for one year.

A laptop will be provided and the opportunity to apply for funding to support the research project.

A qualitative exploration of the factors that determine progression from Phase III to Phase IV cardiac rehabilitation among underrepresented groups 

In the United Kingdom (UK), over 2.3 million people are living with coronary heart disease (CHD; British Heart Foundation, 2022). Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) is a core component of secondary prevention that can reduce hospitalisations, cardiovascular mortality, and improves an individual’s quality of life (McMahon, Ades, & Thompson, 2017). Traditional CR paths involve four phases: Phase I in hospital, Phase II early outpatient, Phase III early CR of 8-11 weeks, and Phase IV long-term maintenance programme (Kerins, McKee, & Bennett, 2011). It is crucial that individuals engage with longer-term CR programmes (beyond 11 weeks) to ensure long-term health and reduce admissions among these individuals (Driscoll et al., 2020). Given the aforementioned benefits of CR, pre-COVID, only 20-50% of those eligible in the UK accessed Phase III (Herber et al., 2017), with this percentage further decreasing during the pandemic by 36%. Furthermore, there as a further reduction of 11% in ethnic minority and 6% in female participation in CR, two groups which are already significantly underrepresented in CR. As such, the most recent NACR report (2021) stated that the development and implementation of strategies to prevent this gap widening is a key priority. While data regarding uptake for long-term Phase IV CR is limited in the UK, data from the United States and Germany showed that approximately 5-30% of individuals who attended Phases I-III transferred to Phase IV long-term maintenance. Given the aforementioned importance of CR coupled with declining participation rates, it is important we understand the factors that influence progression from Phase III to Phase IV CR in the UK.

This Masters by Research will adopt qualitative methods to explore and understand the factors that influence an individual’s progression or decision not to progress from Phase III to Phase IV CR in the UK, particularly among the groups reported as being underrepresented in the recent NACR report (2021). This Masters by Research project has the opportunity to feed into a larger scale project and intervention.

Applicants are encouraged to discuss their proposals with; Dr Alexandra Potts, a.potts@leedsbeckett.ac.uk or Mr Costas Tsakirides, c.tsakirides@leedsbeckett.ac.uk

As part of your application, please provide a CV, cover letter and research proposal. The proposal should align to the above theme and include a brief literature review related to this project, with an outline of the studies that you would propose to the answer the aims of the MRes (maximum 5 pages single spaced).

We can only consider complete applications. The research degree application is complete once you have uploaded all of the following:

1. Your application form (include the project reference CR1)
2. Your research proposal, statement of purpose and CV on the Research proposal template
3. Copies of your bachelors certificates, including transcripts
4. Copy of your IELTS (or equivalent) certificate (if applicable) further information can be found on our Graduate School FAQs
5. Copy of your passport

Email the documentation above) to researchadmissions@leedsbeckett.ac.uk 

The deadline for applications is midnight on 6th November 2022

Candidates must be available for interview on 7th December