Job Description

Main purpose of the job:

• To determine how extended households negotiate and provide care to people with ADRD; as well as how the health and wellbeing of all caregivers are affected by care roles

Location:

• Bushbuckridge, Mpumalanga Province

More info:The MRC/Wits-Agincourt Research Unit is a leading health and population research centre that supports a major research infrastructure including a health and socio-demographic surveillance system (HDSS) covering the Agincourt sub-district of rural Mpumalanga Province adjacent to Mozambique. Taking a life-course approach, the Unit undertakes interdisciplinary observational and intervention research collaborating with scientists from South and sub-Saharan African, UK/European, and North American institutions.The two postdoctoral positions relate to a two-year funded grant that will investigate how families and friends provide care and support in the context of dementia within the MRC/Wits-Agincourt study area. The grant is co-led by Professor Lenore Manderson and Dr. Guy Harling. Professor Manderson is a medical anthropologist with extensive research experience across three continents. At Wits, she leads a programme of work around medical interventions, technology, access, and equity, and on chronic care and aging in community settings. Dr. Harling is a social epidemiologist and Wellcome Trust/Royal Society Sir Henry Dale fellow at University College London who has worked in South Africa since 2004. His research focus is on how social connections and social networks both places people at risk for and protect them against, poor health outcomes.The study is concerned with (1) how extended households negotiate and provide care to people with ADRD; and (2) how the health and wellbeing of all caregivers are affected by care roles. Rural South Africa is ideal for examining ADRD caregiving since dementia prevalence is rising, understanding of dementia is limited, formal care is limited, and household structures and social networks are diverse and in flux due to poverty, rapid social change, circular migration, and comorbid conditions - all allowing careful examination of constellations of care.The study will be multidisciplinary, involving both quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis, including qualitative observation of household activities, in-depth interviews, and quantitative surveys to determine patterns of care and health among residents, non-resident kin, and non-kin. Inquiries about academic aspects of the positions can be directed to Professor Manderson (lenore.manderson@wits.ac.za) for qualitative-focused work or Dr. Harling (g.harling@ucl.ac.uk) for quantitative-focused work.Successful applicants will join a multidisciplinary team and enjoy unparalleled opportunities across all stages of the research process. This will include ethics and public engagement, field research, data management, and research-to-policy engagement. Fellows will be mentored to publish in peer-review journals.The positions will be based in Bushbuckridge, Mpumalanga Province, where Wits offers several accommodation options, with time in the School of Public Health and related departments in Johannesburg, and possibly occasional travel abroad. The fellowship is initially tenable for one year. Renewals are not guaranteed, but a second year may be possible depending on good academic performance.Required minimum education and training:

• Doctorate awarded within past 5 years (or pending)
• Background in a relevant discipline(s), including Epidemiology, Anthropology, Public Health, Demography, Population Studies, related Social Sciences
• Evidence of high academic and scholarly potential
• English language proficiency, strong conceptual and writing skills

Desirable additional education, work experience, and personal abilities:

• Knowledge of Shangaan/Xitsonga or a related language would be an advantage
• Evidence of interest in research on social networks, aging, caregiving, or dementia

TO APPLY:Please include the following documentation:

• A cover letter (maximum one page) outlining your interest and suitability for the position.
• A detailed CV including three contactable referees.
• Certified qualifications and transcript
• Certified ID copy and driver's license

• Only if you do meet the minimum job requirements and experience as mentioned above, you may submit a detailed updated CV.
• Please Apply Online and complete your registration on Ditto Hire (our application tracking system) to enable and protect you as a candidate to accept the new POPIA terms and conditions. This will then create your permanent profile with which you can apply for all jobs as advertised by AJ PERSONNEL. However, you may remove your profile from AJ PERSONNEL when you are no longer in the job market.
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• Please take note that the applicants who do not adhere to the above criteria will not be considered for the respective position.
• The closing date for all applications: 07 January 2022.
• Wits Health Consortium will only respond to shortlisted candidates.
• Candidates who have not been contacted within two weeks of the closing date can consider their applications to be unsuccessful.
• Note WHC, in accordance with their Employment Equity goals and plan, will give preference to suitable applicants from designated groups as defined in the Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998 and subsequent amendments thereto.

Please note:

• AJ Personnel is only responsible for the advertising of the advertisement on behalf of their client Wits Health Consortium.
• AJ Personnel does not have any salary or other information regarding the position.

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