* SERG PhD Opportunity [OPEN 2024] *

When we hear the words wearable technology, we may tend to think about digital watches or fitness trackers which many of us use to track our daily activities or help guide our fitness regimes. But this same technology offers great potential to support patients with long term conditions and help improve health related outcomes.

What are wearables?

Wearable technologies refer to devices worn by an individual with the ability of capturing real-time data. These devices include accelerometers, which capture the acceleration of a limb or the entire body; gyroscopes, which measure orientation and angular velocity; and inertial measurement units (IMUs) that combine accelerometer, gyroscope, and magnetometer data to help track the orientation and movement of individual body parts. Wearables can connect to a range of devices through wi-fi and bluetooth, allowing for data to be live streamed in real time. The rapid development of wearable technologies, which are low cost, light weight and with extended battery life, provides great potential for a broad range of applications. An example of this is the use of IMUs to assess gait parameters in drop foot patients, research on which our group recently worked on.

A new model of patient care

The success of many primary care pathways relies on the close monitoring of patients, where individuals visit healthcare settings to monitor their condition and its progression. But resource challenges within the sector coupled with technological advances mean there is now great potential to optimise some of these care pathways using wearable technologies and biofeedback. The ability for clinicians to monitor key patient metrics remotely may help to optimise recovery through ‘precision rehabilitation’.  Individual interventions can be adjusted, and goals refined remotely based on patients’ wearable data.

Biofeedback makes use of electronic equipment to provide patients with additional biological information, beyond which is naturally available to them. The use of smart phones and watches offer the ability to feedback the user through auditory, visual, and vibrotactile means in real time.  A review conducted by our group found that biofeedback has been used successfully in a range of patient groups to improve gait related outcomes. Presenting feedback in home-based settings using wearables can help facilitate the trend for healthcare to move away from a clinical model to a self-care model supported by technology.

Optimising care for joint replacement patients

Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease with a prevalence of 85% in individuals over 65 years. Joint replacement is a common intervention to reduce physical limitations, with the knee and the hip the most common joints replaced. The use of wearable technologies offers great potential to support patients following total joint replacement surgery. This monitoring of real-time function during the rehabilitation period offers the patient and clinicians a means of assessing progress and may reduce the need for some direct supervision in healthcare settings. In addition, the use of wearables can help engage those with osteoarthritis in becoming more physically active. Providing individuals real time access to fundamental metrics, such as step counts and sitting time, have been found to improve activity levels compared to patients who didn’t receive any feedback. Automated reminders and data visualisation can motivate patients to become more physically active, often leading to improved outcomes. Activity monitoring may also benefit those on the waiting list for joint replacement surgery, as preoperative functional limitations have been linked to worse postoperative outcomes in this group.

Interested in applying?

We are offering a Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) scholarship to explore the use of technology to support care pathways for joint replacement surgery. The GTA scheme aims to develop highly skilled postgraduate researchers who are well prepared to enter a career in academia or research. The GTA scheme is an opportunity for you to receive a 3.5-year full-time PhD scholarship at Sheffield Hallam University. While supporting the PhD research, you will carry out up to 180 hours of teaching or teaching-related activity per academic year, with the intention of providing opportunities to develop a rounded academic portfolio.

For further details on the research project, the scholarship and details of how to apply please follow this link or contact the lead supervisor – Dr Andrew Barnes

To apply for the GTA scholarship, you will need to complete and submit an application form here along with a detailed 1,500-word research proposal addressing the project title.

The closing date for applications is Wednesday 15th May 2024 at 12:00 GMT.