CAHPR Top Ten Tips

CAHPR's Top Ten Tips series offer brief summary advice on key topics for novice, early career and experienced researchers. This series is written and produced by CAHPR hubs and guest authors.

Becoming a Peer Reviewer

Peer reviewing is an essential skill for AHP researchers, academics and senior practitioners, enhancing critical appraisal and feedback skills. This top ten tips will help you to develop your peer reviewing skills. Download this top ten tips.

Becoming Research Active

The motivation for Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) to become active in research has never been so strong. Engagement in research enables AHPs to lead research which impacts clinical practice and improves patient care. These top ten tips represent an accessible overview of how to become research active and highlight some of the barriers and enablers to research activity. The tips are written by research active AHPs, some of whom are currently undertaking doctoral studies or have recent experience of successfully completing a doctorate in clinically related research. Download this top ten tips.

Capturing Research Impact

Research Impact can be defined as an effect, an influence, a significant change or benefit to health, quality of life, society, policy, services, the environment and the economy. This leaflet provides handy top ten tips to help you plan for and capture Research Impact. Download this top ten tips.

Clinical-Academic Careers

A clinical-academic is defined as a qualified healthcare professional who also works in academia, typically in research, teaching, or both. Clinical-academic careers (CAC) present a unique set of opportunities for the individual, their patients, and their organisation. This leaflet aims to provide our top ten tips for a successful clinical-academic career. Download this top ten tips.

Enabling Research Activity

Building a research culture within an organisation enables it to demonstrate clinical and cost effectiveness, encourages innovation, empowers staff to review their practice and use current evidence to deliver good patient outcomes and deliver high quality care. This handy top ten tips will help you to enable research activity within the clinical workplace. Download this top ten tips.

Engaging with your AHSN

The 15 Academic Health Science Networks (AHSN) work in partnership with local organisations in order to speed up adoption of innovative practice and facilitate wealth creation through various activities such as the co-development of new products and services. This top ten tips will help you to engage and work with your local AHSN. Download this top ten tips.

Getting Your Abstract Accepted

Conferences, symposia and other similar events normally invite abstract submissions. Writing an abstract can be challenging, but they are an excellent opportunity to showcase your work and share your findings, thoughts and ideas with others. These top tips will help you in preparing and writing an abstract. Download this top ten tips.

Getting your paper published

Sharing knowledge is important for developing and promoting the contribution that allied health professionals make to patient care. This ‘Top 10 Tips’ will help you to get your paper written and published efficiently and successfully. Download this top ten tips.

Implementation for impact

It takes on average 17 years to get research into practice and only 30-40% results in a demonstrable patient benefit. Therefore, implementation can enhance uptake of research and reduce research waste. Implementation is a complex, multifaceted process that requires an interdisciplinary approach and considers patient and public priorities, and knowledge of theory. Download this top ten tips

Medtech development for AHPs

Medical technology (Medtech) is the use of technology to improve diagnosis, monitoring and/or treatment of medical conditions. Involvement in Medtech development is an exciting way for AHP’s to improve healthcare whilst opening up many personal and professional opportunities. This top ten tips will help you understand the process and get involved in Medtech development. Download this top ten tips.

NEW - Navigating doctoral studies: overview

Doctoral level training enables AHPs to lead research which impacts clinical practice and improves patient experience.  While rewarding, the doctoral journey may sometimes become an isolating experience.   These handy top ten tips represent an overview of the navigation of doctoral studies. These tips are written by healthcare professionals outside of medicine undertaking doctoral studies and by those with recent experience of successfully completing a doctoral studies within clinical and non-clinical environments. Download this top ten tips or visit our webpage Navigating doctoral studies: overview.

Patient and public involvement

Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) volunteers contribute their expertise, helping to develop ideas, assisting with writing grant proposals, undertaking research and disseminating research findings. This leaflet provides a handy ‘top ten tips’ to PPI for AHPs. Download this top ten tips.

Preparing a scientific poster

Posters are effective visual communication tools, able to engage people in a conversation, convey main points to large crowds and advertise one’s work (research/clinical project). This leaflet provides a handy top ten tips to developing an effective scientific poster. Download this top ten tips.

Running a journal club

A journal club can be a useful way to join a group of like-minded professionals together to consider evidence formally or informally and it is great CPD.  This leaflet provides a handy ‘Top 10 Tips’ to help you to set up and run a journal club in your work area. Download this top ten tips.

Seeking ethical approval

Obtaining necessary ethical approvals for research is essential, regardless of how large or small the project. Research involving NHS patients or carers requires NHS ethics committee, Health Research Authority (in England) and organisational approval. This leaflet provides top ten tips about ethical approval to help plan and conduct research. Download this top ten tips.

Social Media

Social media enables users to build communities around common interests, share ideas, engage with experts, collaborate and create new networks. This handy ‘Top 10 Tips’ will help you through the initial stages of engaging with social media. Download this top ten tips.

Statistics

Health research often involves descriptive and inferential statistics. Statistics needn’t be a scary process if you follow a basic step-by-step guide. This leaflet provides handy top ten tips on planning and performing your statistical analyses. Download this top ten tips.

Writing service improvement case studies

Organisations use service and quality improvement case studies to demonstrate real-life implementation of evidence and guidelines in health and social care, promote best practice, highlight actions that others can learn from, and celebrate excellence. These top tips will help you to write and share an award-winning case study. Download this top ten tips.


Most of the top ten tips series are available as hardcopy A6 leaflets. If you would like to order some for your department or event, contact: cahpr@csp.org.uk