Postdoc within epidemiology and register based research about heart failure in older people

Do you want to contribute to top quality medical research?

Research at the Unit of Epidemiology, Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, is focused on increasing knowledge of disease aetiology and prognosis with an emphasis on environmental and lifestyle factors and on methodological development and rigour. The research is based on large register-based cohorts with data from inpatient, outpatient and primary care as well as cohorts and case-control studies with extensive information from questionnaires and biological samples. The unit is divided into four research groups, one of which is ‘Ageing and Health’ led by Associate Professor Karin Modig. Karin works closely with Katharina Schmidt-Mende, a general practitioner and researcher at the NVS, Department of Primary Care.

The research focus is on the health of the ageing population. Questions such as “what is driving the increase in life expectancy,” “how has health among older people developed as life has lengthened,” and “what can be expected in the future” are central.

We are now seeking a postdoctoral researcher for an interdisciplinary project focusing on heart failure in older individuals with multimorbidity. The position is primarily based at the Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, but is carried out in close collaboration with the Division of Family Medicine and Primary Care, NVS, Karolinska Institutet, as well as the Academic Primary Care Centre, Region Stockholm. The position is a two‑year fixed‑term employment with the possibility of extension.

Your mission

The postdoctoral researcher is expected to conduct research within an interdisciplinary project on heart failure in older adults. The project is a collaboration between primary care, epidemiology, and pharmacoepidemiology, and aims to study care, treatment, and prognosis in heart failure among older individuals with complex disease profiles and multimorbidity. A particular focus is on the use and implementation of evidence-based pharmacological treatments in clinical practice, for example adherence to treatment guidelines and how this varies by treatment initiation as well as patient-, disease-, and healthcare-related factors.

Under supervision, the postdoctoral researcher will be responsible for planning and conducting register-based epidemiological and pharmaco-epidemiological studies, managing and analysing large datasets, performing statistical analyses, and authoring scientific articles for publication in international peer-reviewed journals. The postdoctoral researcher is expected to work closely with clinical researchers in primary care and to contribute actively to the interdisciplinary collaboration. The postdoctoral researcher will analyse large and complex datasets and should therefore have documented skills in computational statistics and programming. In addition, the postdoctoral researcher is expected to participate in the supervision of master’s students and in teaching.

Your profile

To be eligible for employment as a postdoctoral researcher, a PhD or a foreign degree deemed to be equivalent to a Swedish PhD is required. This eligibility requirement must be fulfilled at the latest at the time of the employment decision. Completion of your doctoral degree within the last three years is considered an advantage. If there are special reasons, your degree may have been completed earlier.

We are looking for a highly motivated candidate to join an interdisciplinary and productive research group. Particular emphasis will be placed on scientific competence, experience in epidemiological methods, statistical programming, and the use of register-based data.

The following qualifications will be assessed:

• A PhD in medicine or health sciences (e.g. public health, pharmacology, epidemiology) or an equivalent relevant background
• Documented experience in pharmacoepidemiology
• Knowledge of cardiovascular diseases and geriatrics
• Knowledge of primary care
• Experience in handling large datasets, including health care and population-based registers
• Well-documented scientific writing skills
• Statistical expertise and experience in analysing large and complex datasets
• Proficiency in statistical software such as R and/or SAS/Stata
• Excellent proficiency in English is required; knowledge of Swedish is considered a merit

The applicant should demonstrate the ability to work well in a collaborative research environment, while also being able to work independently, take responsibility for their own research, and develop new research questions.

What do we offer?

A creative and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. At Karolinska Institutet, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden. At KI, you get to meet researchers working with a wide range of specialisms and methods, giving you ample opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience with the various scientific fields within medicine and health. It is the crossover collaborations, which have pushed KI to where it is today, at the forefront of global research. Several of the people you meet in healthcare are educated at KI. A close relationship with the health care providers is important for creating groundbreaking top quality education and research. Karolinska Institutet is also a state university, which entitles you to several benefits through our collective agreement.

Location: Solna

Choose to work at KI – Ten reasons why

Ageing and Health – Karin Modig's research group

Application

An employment application must contain the following documents in English or Swedish:

• PhD certificate
• A complete resumé, including date of the thesis defence, title of the thesis, previous academic positions, academic title, current position, academic distinctions, and committee work
• A complete list of publications
• A summary of current work (no more than one page)

The application is to be submitted through the Varbi recruitment system.

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