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Academic selected for internationally-acclaimed osteopathic research leadership programme

03 June, 2020

Dr. Kesava Kovanur Sampath, an academic colleague at Ara Institute of Canterbury Ltd’s musculoskeletal health and osteopathy programmes has recently been selected to take part in an internationally-acclaimed osteopathic research leadership programme.

The program, which attracts applications from around the world, is highly competitive and Dr. Sampath was the only New Zealand candidate to gain acceptance. “My programme leader Emma Fairs sent me links to the social media sites where I could apply. In the end there was over 40 applicants for the programme, and eleven finally got selected” says Dr. Sampath, underlining just how discerning the selection process is.

Designed and overseen by senior health researchers with a view to developing the capabilities of future international osteopathy researchers, the programme runs over three years at the University of Technology Sydney’s Faculty of Health. The UTS researchers, who have close relationships with the professional osteopathic community, all have a history of successful research mentoring and capacity-building, and were inspired by the experiences of Distinguished Professor Jon Adams, while acting as a Senior Fellow and Mentor within the Oxford International Research Leadership Programme at the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford. Professor Adams is now teaching within the Faculty of Health at UTS.

Ara Institute of Canterbury Ltd’s talented Dr. Sampath will be in a prime position to mingle with upcoming cohort of researchers and researcher-practitioners and further the scientific examination of topics relevant to the osteopathic community. Ultimately, the programme’s goal is to promote a global research culture which enables emerging osteopathic researchers to positively contribute to the experiences of osteopathy patients, practitioners, policymakers and the wider medical profession.

Dr. Sampath describes it as a “residential programme, where we meet, collaborate and come up with research ideas.” The programme normally has participants attending an annual five-day onsite intensive at the Faculty of health, but this year proceedings have had to adapt to a COVID-conscious world. “The plan was that the fellows were expected to go to Sydney for one week each year and work. That should have happened in June, but because of the COVID situation, the face-to-face residential programme has been postponed until next year. So last week, we met on Zoom” said Dr. Sampath, reflecting the commonality of a new reliance on video conferencing technology.

While physical attendance at UTS may be delayed, Dr. Sampath and his departmental colleagues can easily see the benefits of his selection. James Jowsey, Ara Institute’s Manager – Applied Sciences, stated that “This is a great opportunity to get Ara Institute’s osteopathic research in the global space and opens up collaborative opportunities. This approach also lets Kesava gain critical insights and align courses with the latest evidence-based guidelines, thereby ensuring that students at Ara are learning through evidence-based practice throughout their study.”

Dr. Sampath echoes this enthusiasm, saying “The department at Ara are very supportive; my manager, James Jowsey, is very positive, and is always keen for me to explore opportunities. My colleagues have also been very supportive over the last two or three years while I was doing my PhD. There was also a lot of encouragement from the Research Office at Ara, and I especially appreciated the help of Elizabeth Sinclair from the office.”

He concludes by adding “There’s always opportunities for professional growth and development at Ara; that is my personal experience, that we all have the opportunity to personally develop within areas of our interest.