Professional Doctorate Health and Wellbeing

Here's what to expect:

• Research-focused learning: engage with a curriculum modelled on PhD-level research, tailored for experienced professionals, to explore the nature and challenges of professional practice.
• Skill development: build expertise in innovation, managing change, and translating ideas into actionable outcomes as part of your role as an expert practitioner.
• Experiential learning: participate in hands-on and IT-based activities that connect directly to your current professional work while focusing on organisational transformation.
• Preparation for leadership: the course prepares you to take on leading roles in clinical practice, management, entrepreneurship, and teaching, emphasising practical application and strategic thinking.

Many of our research supervisors have internationally recognised expertise in a range of research methodologies and frequently work across subject areas so, for example, research supervision can take place around the intersections of Education and Health and Sport and Psychology. We support students with a vibrant seminar and workshop calendar of events and sits within a and broader university research community where a very wide range of activity and support takes place.

PhD studies are typically conducted by completing a research thesis full-time (usually in three years) or part-time (usually six years). PhDs are theoretical research projects seeking to advance knowledge or understanding of a subject to inform further research, education and policy. They can cover a wide range of subjects – learn more by watching our research videos.

Award Leader of the Professional Doctorate in Health

David Matheson is a highly experienced researcher and educator in healthcare and medical education with proven experience in course development, leadership as well as academic supervision and external examining at undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral levels. David was Deputy Lead and then Acting Lead for the Caring for Lifelong Health Research Centre. To date, he has over 50 peer-reviewed academic publications in education, healthcare and medical education and 14 successful doctoral completions. He is currently supervising 16 doctoral students and is the Postgraduate Research Tutor for all doctoral students researching health-related topics in the Faculty of Education, Health and Wellbeing, managing the admissions process for PhD applicants across health. He also delivers front-line pastoral care & support to doctoral students and supports academic colleagues who supervise doctoral students.

David leads the thesis module for the Professional Doctorate in Health and Wellbeing and several modules in the Leading Education and Assessing Performance programme of senior medical and surgical faculty development for Health Education England West Midland. David also contributes to undergraduate, postgraduate and CPD modules for both Advanced Nurse Practitioners and other Allied Healthcare Professionals.

David has edited seminal academic books and was section editor and now member of the editorial board for the Springer Handbook for Promoting Social Justice in Education. He is also a member of the editorial board of BMC Medical Education. David is a member of the Support and Influencing Committee for Prostate Cancer UK and a patient advocate for Prostate Cancer Research and a patient representative for the Trial Management Group of STAMPEDE, one of largest trials of novel prostate cancer therapies in the world. He is a patient researcher on the STOPCaP project, contributing to meta-analyses of prostate cancer studies.

Head of Doctoral Studies and Research Fellowship

Dr Hilary Paniagua worked previously as an advanced practitioner (ANP) in women’s health before she pursued a career in academia and ultimately became a researcher and author. Her career interest focuses on issues concerning the narrative understanding of general practice and how it happens. As the editor of The Journal of Health and Social Care and member of two nursing journal editorial boards she has written extensively on issues relating to advanced practice nursing, primary care, law and research. Her book Practice Made Perfect: Higher Aspirations for Practice Nurses, Quay Books, embraces challenges specific to UK advanced nursing practice in six brief chapters. Previous teaching experience includes leading on Masters ANP programmes in primary care, and being instrumental in setting up the first Physicians Assistant programme in Britain. Hilary is currently chair of the research ethics committee within the Faculty of Health in Wolverhampton University and she is chair of the Black Country NHS Research Ethics Committee.She received her doctorate in Swansea University in (2009).

Research interests

• Research in primary care
• Research in women’s health
• Research in general practice