Dr Jo Butterworth

About me:

I am an academic GP with research interests in shared decision-making as a core component of patient-centred, personalised care.

I have been a member of the Exeter Collaboration for Academic Primary Care (APEx) at the University of Exeter since 2009, most recently securing a four-year NIHR-funded academic clinical lectureship, commencing October 2023.

I was among the first cohort of students to graduate from the Peninsula Medical School in 2007 and I undertook my foundation training as a doctor in Exeter. From there I began to develop an academic career alongside my GP training. I qualified as a GP in 2013 whilst simultaneously achieving a Masters in Primary Care research. I hold a doctoral fellowship award from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) (£430,304; January 2018 – June 2023).

My PhD project was titled:

Development of a complex intervention (VOLITION) aimed at facilitating the involvement of older people living with multiple long-term conditions in decision-making about their health care during GP consultations.

https://blogs.exeter.ac.uk/volition/

I work as a GP delivering clinical care. I have special interests in women’s health and I am competent to fit contraceptive devices.

I engage in teaching opportunities, with medical students, trainee GPs and peers, both within the university and at the GP practice.

I am a member of both training and capacity development and research planning groups for NIHR School for Primary Care Research (SPCR) at APEx.

I enjoy the balance of clinical and research commitments and find that each fuels my enthusiasm for the other. I also 'job share' with my husband, as Mum to our two gorgeous girls.

Interests:

I was enthused to pursue an academic career following the publication of my undergraduate research. This was an independent, qualitative interview study that I carried out during my medical school elective placement on the Isles of Scilly, Cornwall.

My current research interests in shared decision-making and multiple long-term conditions began during an NIHR-funded Academic Clinical Fellowship: I published a secondary analysis of national survey data, identifying that patients’ reports of involvement in decision-making were more strongly associated with reports of trust in the GP among older people when compared with younger people.

The subsequent interview study became the dissertation paper for my Masters degree in Primary Care Research. I found that living with multiple long-term conditions affected patient experiences of involvement. I planned my PhD studies to address the gaps in the evidence, with a view to improving the quality of patient care.

Qualifications:

Doctor of Philosophy in Medical Studies, University of Exeter, 2023

Masters degree in Primary Care Research (MRes), University of Manchester (online learning), 2013

Membership of the Royal College of General Practitioners (MRCGP), 2013

Diploma from the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare (DFSRH), 2012

Bachelor of Medicine Bachelor of Surgery (BMBS - Distinction), Peninsula Medical School, 2007

Career:

Academic training and experience

I acquired basic research skills during my undergraduate training and by undertaking a Masters degree in Primary Care Research (University of Manchester), before seeking more advanced training and experiences during my PhD:

Intervention development methods:

Complex intervention development and evaluation courses, DECIPHer, Cardiff (2018), Intervention Mapping summer residential course, Maastricht, The Netherlands (2018).

Systematic review methods:

Cochrane systematic review training modules, online (2018); Lead on a collaborative Cochrane review with national team (2018-19).

Quantitative methods:

Statistical modelling and logistic regression using STATA, University College London (2020); analysis of survey data whilst leading an independent study (2022).

Qualitative methods:

Advanced Qualitative Methods, University of Oxford (2019); Independent analysis of interview and focus group data during Masters studies (2019-22).

Trial Design:

Design and Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials, Keele University (2019); Process Evaluation seminar series, University of Exeter (2019); Mentoring meetings with Clinical Trials Unit managers, Exeter (2018); Design and publication of randomised controlled feasibility trial protocol (2020).

Health Economics:

Basic Health Economics, online, University of Oxford (2021).

Research Management:

Good Clinical Practice training (last updated 2023); Ethics modules, Health Research Authority (2018); Leading three empirical PhD studies (2018-23).

Collaborations and Networking:

Multiple long-term conditions workshop, NIHR academy (2022); International Multimorbidity Symposium workshop, Sweden (2018).

Forming contacts at NHS England's institute for personalised care (Professor Alf Collins, Dr Adrian Hayter); Guidance from Professor Al Mulley (shared decision-making expert), Dartmouth Institute Global Health Care Delivery Science Program, USA (2019-present).

Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE):

Coordination of a PPIE group: Eight members who contribute to 6-monthly planning meetings, provide feedback on participant-facing study materials, attend data interpretation workshops, and support grant proposals, with support of Applied Research Collaboration Southwest Peninsula (PenARC), (2018-present).