SSM ECRs featuring… Jack Birch!
Jack Birch is a PhD student at the MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge
Jack Birch
University of Cambridge
PhD student
SSM member since: 2020
SSM participation: 2020 ASM, ECR workshop 2020
Topics of interest: Health inequalities, health promotion, obesity
What inspired you to pursue a career in public health?
As I was deciding on what undergraduate courses to apply for, the Health and Social Care Act 2012 was being discussed and implemented in England, and it ignited a personal interest in public health and healthcare policy. It was the first time I became aware of the social determinants of health and their fundamental role in determining people’s health status.
What excites you about working in research now?
It feels that, as researchers, we are moving beyond describing health inequalities that exist to how we can reduce and prevent them from occurring. This is a really exciting shift to be part of, and is creating many exciting and innovative opportunities to collaborate with members of the public and colleagues from a range of backgrounds and fields.
What area of social medicine/public health are you interested in?
My particular area of interest is how inequalities interact with public health interventions and impact on how effective those interventions are in different groups (such as by gender, socioeconomic position or ethnicity). More specifically, my PhD focuses on whether inequalities exist in the uptake of, adherence to and effectiveness of behavioural weight management interventions (e.g. programmes delivered in primary care, community organisations or commercial programmes such as WW or Slimming World).
Can you tell us a bit about a project you’re working on now?
I’m currently conducting an individual participant data meta-analysis investigating inequalities in attendance and weight outcomes in trials of behavioural weight management interventions. This involves collating data from up to 15 trials from more than 10 UK-based institutions and analysing as one large dataset. By using this approach and having a large number of participants compared to a single trial, it should increase the likelihood of detecting if inequalities exist in behavioural weight management interventions.
What do you hope this will lead to?
I hope that by identifying groups where interventions are inequitable (i.e. less effective in those who are more deprived), that future intervention development will aim to reduce inequalities and prevent intervention-generated inequalities from occurring.
To keep up to date with Jack, follow him on Twitter @jackmbirch or get in touch via email.
SSM ECR features is a new blog series that celebrates early career researchers. Each month we meet a member we admire, learn more about their work and find out what and who inspires them. To find out more visit socsocmed.org.uk/blog or email ecr.ssm@gmail.com.