The Association for the Study of Medical Education (ASME), which includes in its goals, the promotion of high quality research into medical education, annually invites Members (including undergraduate student members and employees of institutions that are members of the Association) to submit bids for small grants to support a research study in the field of medical or other healthcare education. ASME welcomes submissions from new as well as established researchers. ASME particularly welcomes applicants from diverse and under-represented backgrounds.
Some educational research projects require modest amounts of funding to cover expenses such as focus group attendance, travel, and simulated patient fees. These grants are intended to assist such projects. All recipients of the Small Grants award are contractually obligated to produce an end of project report to the ASME Board and to make, via open licence, any teaching / learning resource produced, available via ASME’s website to its membership.
The maximum award per individual or project under the scheme is £5,000 or equivalent (bids for smaller amounts of funding are welcomed and encouraged)
We are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2021 awards:
Helen Church & Dr Stevie Agius, University of Nottingham: Foundation 3 Year Jobs: Evaluating their impact on postgraduate medical training.
“We are delighted to have received an ASME Small Grant Award in anticipation of our forthcoming research project. Our research into early medical career decisions aims to inform and improve the future of medical training and recruitment for years to come and by awarding this grant, ASME demonstrates their commitment to this topic and to supporting medical education research more widely. We thank ASME for their generosity and look forward to reporting back on our research findings at future ASME events.”
Gillian Scanlan (pictured) & Dr Cate Kennedy, The University of Dundee, Striving to be an Excellent Healthcare Professional and an Excellent Parent: Exploring the Stories of UK Doctors and Nurses.
“I am delighted to have received this award from ASME for the project entitled ‘Striving to be an Excellent Healthcare Professional and an Excellent Parent: Exploring the Stories of UK Doctors and Nurses’. This research will explore the dual role of healthcare professionals who are parents and how these experiences impact on multiple facets of wellbeing. Understanding the facilitators and challenges for this group is crucial to support their wellbeing and help retain a highly skilled workforce that can meet both immediate and future healthcare needs.
I would like to thank my co-investigator Dr Catherine Kennedy @CafKennedy for helping in the development of this research grant and the enthusiasm she has shown in engaging in this important work. We are both very passionate about this field of research both personally and professionally and look forward to starting our project in early summer.”
Taona Nyamapfene (pictured), Dr Joanne Butterworth & Professor Mike Eaton, University of Exeter Medical School, General Practitioners’ Perceptions of Training in Shared Decision-Making: A Qualitative Study
“I am so grateful to receive the ASME small grant for my research. As an intercalating medical student, and aspiring medical educator, this award has provided me with motivation to continue pursuing my research interests and working on projects which have the potential to inspire current practices in teaching. I would like to thank ASME for their support.”
Zahra Jaffry (pictured), Alexander Schade, Jim Harrison, Bart’s Health, Improving the Management of Open Fractures in Malawi
“It is an honour to have received this grant. Developing a training programme on the management of open fractures for clinical officers at a district hospital level in Malawi will not only improve patient outcomes but build surgical capacity. This pilot can then be adapted for use in areas across Africa and South East Asia, a step towards accomplishing the Lancet Commission for Global Surgery’s goals.”
Michael Page & Dr Elizabeth Carty, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, QMUL, Exploring marginalisation and agency in Specialty Doctors’ experiences of appraisal and professional development – a phenomenological investigation
‘We are delighted with this award, which will allow us to take forward our research on the appraisal and professional development opportunities for Speciality Doctors, who are vital members of the current and future healthcare workforce.’
Hugh Alberti (pictured), Newcastle University Louise Younie (QMUL), Sophie Park (UCL), Lindsey Pope (Glasgow), Lauren Hall (Newcastle) & Penny Wilson (Newcastle), Students and tutors’ experiences of student-led remote consulting
“We are immensely grateful to ASME for the small study grant in order to undertake our multi-centre study exploring students remote consulting in undergraduate GP placements. The study is being led by two academic Foundation Doctors and would not be possible without the funding. We hope the results will inform medical educators of the future as students, like clinicians, undertake increasing numbers of consultations remotely. The funding also enables significant PPI involvement which is both crucial and indispensable. The study is underway and we hope the results will be available by the end of the year”
Eva K Hennel (pictured), Sören Huwendiek, University of Bern, Institute for Medical Education, Department for Assessment and Evaluation (AAE), Supervisors in multisource feedback: what do they need to best support residents?
“I am very grateful for the opportunities ASME offers with regards to both funding and networking and I am very happy to be awarded this grant. It also means a lot to hear from the committee that my project is considered novel and important! I am looking forward to deepen our understanding of multisource feedback in residency training by conducting the project and by discussing the results at the ASM 2022.”
Robert Bain, Jack Filan, Simone Soars, James Lee & Anna Goulding, Newcastle University, Understanding Barriers to Academic Careers in Undergraduate Medical Education.
‘We would like to thank ASME for their support of our project. As medical students, we are extremely excited to explore the barriers undergraduate medical students of all backgrounds face when considering a career in clinical academia and how these barriers can be overcome.’
Ana Baptista, Imperial College London, What does personal tutoring contribute to professional identity development in undergraduate medical students?
“Personally, it is always a profound joy to go through the creative process of shaping a medical educational research project. Then, knowing that an ASME panel of assessors recognised this idea as worthy of support and funding takes it to another level of joy and excitement. I truly believe in the transformative power of (higher) education and also of educational research. It is therefore a great honour to be part of the ASME community, and have the opportunity to contribute to promote excellence in medical education and medical education research.”
Our recipients will be invited to will be invited to presentation at the ASME Annual Scholarship Meeting (ASM) after their project has been completed.
