PhD: AI to support rapid intervention co-production

Fully funded PhD at the University of Bristol using AI to support rapid and inclusive public health intervention design during emergencies.

During infection outbreaks and public health emergencies, rapid development, implementation, and evaluation of interventions are essential. For interventions to be successful, they must be co-produced with people affected by them, grounded in evidence, and informed by behavioural theory.

However, time pressures during emergency response often mean that voices from underrepresented communities are excluded, limiting the reach and effectiveness of interventions. Our team has developed widely used tools that integrate theory, evidence, and patient/public involvement (PPI) in intervention development. Yet, more rapid and inclusive approaches are urgently needed.

This project will explore the potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support rapid intervention development by analysing and synthesising data and input from individuals from underrepresented communities. AI-assisted approaches could make it quicker and easier to understand and accommodate perspectives that are often overlooked, ensuring interventions are tailored to those who need them most.

Project aims:

Explore the potential of AI to support rapid, evidence- and theory-based public health intervention development.

Methods:

Methods could include:

• Piloting a specialised open-source AI agent that can collate and organise a range of qualitative data and PPI insight into an Intervention Planning Table and Table of Changes to inform and expedite intervention development.
• Validating the AI agent with existing anonymised datasets.
• Piloting the agent to inform development of a new interventions and testing its outputs through interviews and workshops.

Supervisors:

Sarah Denford, Lucy Yardley, Dale Weston

Candidate requirements:

Applications are sought from high performing individuals who have, or are expected to obtain, at least a 2.1 degree (or equivalent) in relevant topic areas (e.g., behavioural or social science, psychology, public health). Possession of a relevant Master’s degree or research experience would be advantageous but is not required.

We welcome applications from those with non-standard qualifications who can demonstrate knowledge, experience and skills developed in the workplace, or elsewhere, relevant to the programme of study.

How to apply:

When applying, candidates must select the Population Health PhD programme and enter supervisor names as listed under the project title for which they are applying. Please state Health Protection Research Unit in Evaluation and Behavioural Science in the funding box.

Full details on what to include in your application can be found in the Admissions Statement .

Please note: A Research proposal/statement is not required for this PhD.

Personal statement: Please also provide a personal statement that describes your training and experience so far, your motivation for doing a PhD, your motivations for applying to the University of Bristol, and why you think we should select you.

We are keen to support applicants from minority and under-represented backgrounds (based on protected characteristics) and those who have experienced other challenges or disadvantages. We encourage you to use your personal statement to ensure we can take these factors into account.

Funding

The studentship is fully funded by Health Protection Research Unit in Evaluation and Behavioural Science (HPRU EBS) for three years. The funding covers tuition fees for home students, a stipend at the UKRI rate (£20,780 in 2025/2026).

Overseas students are welcome to apply but you must pay the difference between the home and overseas fees. You must state clearly on your application how you will be paying the difference.

University of Bristol, Bristol Medical School

Bristol Medical School is the largest and one of the most diverse Schools in the University of Bristol, with approximately 930 members of staff and over 300 postgraduate doctoral research students. The School is a leading centre for research and teaching across Population Health Sciences and Translational Health Sciences. Research in the School is collaborative and multi-disciplinary, with staff coming from a wide range of academic disciplines and clinical specialties.

The 2021 Research Excellence Framework (REF) confirmed the University of Bristol’s position as a leading centre for health research. Bristol Medical School contributed to three Units of Assessment including UoA1 (Clinical Medicine), UoA2 (Public Health, Health Services and Primary Care) and UoA4 (Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience). The UoA2 submission, comprising predominantly Medical School staff. was ranked 3rd in the UK with 94% of our submitted research outputs rated as world leading (4*) or internationally excellent (3*). Submissions to UoA1 and UoA4 were shared with varying degrees of representation with the Faculty of Life Sciences. Respectively UoA1 and UoA4 had 94% and 84% of submitted research ranked as 4* or 3*, which represented increases in each category in the proportions of 4* ranked papers as well in growth in GPA rankings above the previous REF2014.

Within the Medical School are several major research centres, groups and programmes. More details can be found on the Medical School website.

Deadline:

Applications for this project will close at 16:00 GMT on Monday 26^th January 2026.

Interviews will be in March 2026.

The anticipated start date is September 2026.