DC2: Wearables for Acute Care Teams (WeACT)

Job description

Teamwork is central to safe and effective patient care in complex care contexts. Yet, acute care teams often experience that maintaining effective collaborative functioning is difficult, especially during stressful medical emergency events. Wearable technology applications (such as wrist worn physiological sensors) represent a crucial opportunity for providing teams with real-time feedback to support their effectiveness. So far, the use of wearable tools for teams is hampered by a lack of knowledge about what data is most meaningful and how it can be used for team support and augmentation in practice. Would you be interested to help us solve these issues? Then we are looking for you!

This PhD position is part of the Tools4Teams project, an EU MSCA Doctoral Network. You will work with professional medical teams to collect sensor signals from various modalities (i.e., physiology, speech, motion) and investigate how dynamics in these signals could be used for assessing, monitoring, and eliciting effective team functioning in acute care settings. Furthermore, you will develop and test ways to use these signals for providing real-time feedback. The research will take place in simulated team training contexts, but our aim is that insights will ultimately also be applicable in real-life crisis scenarios. Your research will involve a combination of advanced quantitative (e.g., time-series analysis, signal processing) and qualitative data analysis techniques.

The successful applicant is expected to:

  • Perform scientific research in the domain described, resulting in a PhD thesis;
  • Present results at (international) conferences;
  • Publish results in scientific journals;
  • Participate in activities of the project group, mainly in Eindhoven and Tilburg, as well as on site at various hospitals within the country.
  • Participate in the Tools4Teams training program, next to the local PhD training program
  • A small amount of teaching is part of the job too.

Job setting

You will be embedded in a project team that spans across two disciplines and universities. You will be employed at Eindhoven University of Technology, where you will work under the supervision of Prof.dr. Josette Gevers (1st promotor) from the Human Performance Management (HPM) group. Moreover, you will work in close collaboration and under the supervision of Dr. Travis J. Wiltshire (co-promotor) from the Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence department at Tilburg University.

The HPM group is part of the School of Industrial Engineering in the department of Industrial Engineering & Innovation Sciences of Eindhoven University of Technology. Here you will have the opportunity to connect with colleagues doing research in the fields of applied psychology, organizational behavior, occupational health, and management. HPM focuses its research and education on the optimization employee functioning and performance in organizations. By examining the ‘people factor’ in operational and innovation processes, HPM aims to ensure that employees can bring organizational strategies to fruition in the most rewarding and efficient way possible. Besides teaching course at the undergraduate, graduate and PhD levels, we work closely with a wide range of industrial and institutional partners to study and support people’s functioning in (high-tech) organizational contexts.

The Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence department at Tilburg University is part of the Tilburg School of Humanities and Digital Sciences. The department emphasizes innovative cutting-edge research in those areas of cognitive science that bring together psychological and computational theories and methodologies. The group is responsible for the Bachelor and the Master program Cognitive Science & Artificial Intelligence, is co-responsible for the university-wide data science Master program Data Science & Society, and is affiliated with the Jheronimus Academy of Data Science (http://www.jads.nl). Researchers in the Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence track have access to computer clusters, experimental lab facilities, and the virtual and mixed reality DAF Technology Lab and its sensing technologies (https://www.tilburguniversity.edu/campus/experiencing-virtual-reality/). Moreover, researchers play an important role in Mind Labs (http://www.mind-labs.eu), an initiative that fosters collaborations between knowledge institutions and corporations in the field of interactive technologies and behavior.

The appointment involves two three-month secondments during which you will temporarily work at a different research group. The first secondment will take place between June-August 2024 at Tilburg University, the Netherlands, where you will work together with Dr. Travis Wiltshire. The second secondment will take place between May-July 2025 at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, where you will work with Dr. Peter Dieckmann. The research to be conducted during the secondments will be determined in the three months leading up to the secondment, together with the primary supervisor and the secondment supervisor, and is intended to supplement the PhD research.

Job requirements

  • A master’s degree (or an equivalent university degree) in a relevant area such as I/O Psychology; Organizational Behavior; Cognitive Science; or a related discipline;
  • Ability and motivation to work on a challenging topic related to teamwork and human-centered design/human factors with both fundamental and applied research aspects. Experience in (field) experimental research is a requirement, experience with wearable or physiological data a plus.
  • Strong analytical skills. Competence for advanced statistical modeling (i.e., multivariate and/or multilevel statistics).
  • Basic programming skills in R, Matlab, and/or Python (or a willingness to learn).
  • Ability and willingness to collaborate in a multidisciplinary research team and with partners in medical settings;
  • Good communication and project management skills; be a team worker, fast learner, autonomous, creative, organized, and efficient.
  • Good (verbal and written) communication skills in English; Mastery of the Dutch language is an advantage.
  • Applicants must meet the MSCA Eligibility Criteria, see the Tools4Teams Recruitment process for more information.

Conditions of employment

This PhD position is funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) of the European Union’s “Horizon Europe 2022” research and innovation program under grant agreement No 101072843. The MSCA programme offers competitive and attractive working conditions. You will be appointed as fulltime PhD for 4 years at the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands. We offer a meaningful job in a dynamic and ambitious university, in an interdisciplinary setting and within an international network. You will work on a beautiful, green campus within walking distance of the central train station. The research project should result in a PhD thesis.

In addition, we offer you:

  • A full-time appointment for a period of 4 years, with an intermediate evaluation after nine months;
  • A salary in accordance with the MSCA regulations for doctoral candidates. Gross salary will consist of a Living Allowance (= €40.800/year, correction factor to be applied for The Netherlands: 1.09) and a monthly Mobility Allowance of €600. An additional monthly allowance of €660 is applicable depending on family situation. Please be aware that these amounts are subject to taxes, the exact salary will be confirmed upon appointment.
  • A yearly holiday allowance of 8% and an end-of-year allowance of 8.3% (annually);
  • An attractive package of fringe benefits, including holiday and end-of-year allowance, a personal development program for PhD students (PROOF program), and excellent sport facilities;
  • Support for your personal development and career planning including participation in courses, summer schools, conference visits, research visits to other institutes (both academic and industrial).

About us
Eindhoven University of Technology is an internationally top-ranking university in the Netherlands that combines scientific curiosity with a hands-on attitude. Our spirit of collaboration translates into an open culture and a top-five position in collaborating with advanced industries. Fundamental knowledge enables us to design solutions for the highly complex problems of today and tomorrow. 

Information
More information about the HPM Group can be found at http://www.hpmtue.nl.

More information about this position should be addressed to Prof.dr. Josette Gevers, phone 040-2474178, e-mail: J.M.P.Gevers@tue.nl

Visit our website for more information about the application process or the conditions of employment. You can also contact Najat Loiazizi, HR advisor, phone: +31 40 2474465, email: pz.ieis@tue.nl.

Are you inspired and would like to know more about working at TU/e? Please visit our career page.

Application

We invite you to submit a complete application (all in English) via this link. The application should include a:

  • Cover letter (two pages maximum), where you motivate your interest in this position and explicitly explain in which ways you represent a good match;
  • An extensive curriculum vitae;
  • Copies of relevant (working) papers or theses;
  • Name and contact information of two references;

If your degree is not from an English-spoken program, a proof of proficiency in English needs to be included in your package (such as IELTS or TOEFL).

Note that incomplete applications will not be considered. Please keep in mind you can upload only 5 documents up to 2 MB each. If necessary, please combine files.

We ask candidates to apply by May 1, 2023 at the latest. Starting date of this position is preferably September 1, 2023.