Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management, Erasmus University Rotterdam invites applications for a four-year PhD position at the department of Health Services Management & Organisation.

Job description
We are recruiting a PhD candidate to investigate the acceptance and integration of novel artificial intelligence (AI) methods in the care pathway for stroke patients from onset to rehabilitation. Using AI to effectively support clinical decision-making is based on a set of assumptions and expectations embedded in the social context. Despite outperforming human judgements, AI solutions might still contain residual uncertainty. Understanding how users of AI solutions deal with this uncertainty is crucial for increasing trust and acceptability of AI solutions. Therefore, our aim is to contribute to knowledge on how data is interpreted by professionals and patients and on how this innovation is accepted by professionals and patients. As a PhD candidate you will analyze under which conditions clinicians trust AI-based decision and prediction models, study ethical dilemmas in AI governance, and assess implementation strategies for adoption of AI-based decision and prediction models. Finally, you will teach in the education programs of Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (about 15% of your time).

This PhD project is one of the five PhD positions in the ICAI Stroke Lab, which is one of the labs in the ROBUST program. ROBUST, a new initiative by the Innovation Center for Artificial Intelligence (ICAI), unites 17 knowledge institutions, 19 participating industry sponsors and 15 civil-social organisations from across the Netherlands. The programme aims to strengthen the Dutch AI ecosystem by boosting fundamental AI research. ROBUST focuses primarily on the development of trustworthy AI technology for the resolution of socially relevant issues, such as those in healthcare, logistics, media, food and energy.

The overall aim of the ICAI Stroke Lab is to improve the outcome of stroke patients by optimizing the whole chain from the 112-call to rehabilitation with AI. Specifically, the lab intends to develop and assess AI based patient stratification (faster, more accurate) for acute stroke care interventions, AI based functional outcome prediction after endovascular therapy, image-guidance in endovascular interventions for better therapeutic outcome and data-driven individualized stroke recovery policies, based on patients' current abilities and on constantly updated prognostic models for stroke recovery. In addition, we will study the acceptance of such AI-models by users (such as clinical decision makers, patients, etc.). The research will be conducted in collaboration with the Erasmus Medical Center and the industrial sponsor and collaborator Philips healthcare Strong collaborations with the other PhD students in the ICAI lab are envisioned.

Your are expected to have a master's degree in the field of social science and humanities. Affinity for or experience within the healthcare field is required. The position requires advanced skills in quantitative and qualitative methods. Therefore, you need to have experience with both. You should be able to communicate and work with clinicians as well as researchers from various fields. Moreover, you have excellent English communication and writing skills.

We offer a full-time position as PhD student at Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR). The PhD candidate will be located at Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (ESHPM). As part of the collaboration in the project, visits to Philips Healthcare are envisioned.

We offer a 1.5-year position with the possibility of extension to 4 years based on performance. Remuneration will be according to the PhD scales set by the Collective Labor Agreement for Dutch Universities (cao NU) and will range from € 2.541 per month in the first year to € 3.247 per month in the fourth year (gross amounts, in case of fulltime employment). Fulltime is 38 hours per week.

In addition, EUR pays an 8% holiday allowance and an end-of-year payment of 8.3% and offers excellent secondary benefits, and a very generous leave scheme. Furthermore, EUR is affiliated with ABP for the pension provision, and we offer partially paid parental leave, fully paid extended birth leave for partners, a personal education budget, work-life balance coaches and more. Employees can also use EUR facilities, such as the Erasmus sports centre and the University library.

The starting date will be May 1, 2023, or sooner if possible.

Erasmus University Rotterdam offers a Dual Career Programme (DCP) to assist the life partners of new academic staff (on payroll) in finding employment in The Netherlands. The programme is offered in close cooperation with the nearby universities of Delft and Leiden.

Erasmus University Rotterdam aspires to be an equitable and inclusive community. We nurture an open culture, where everyone is supported to fulfill their full potential. We see inclusivity of talent as the basis of our successes, and the diversity of perspectives and people as a highly valued outcome. EUR provides equal opportunities to all employees and applicants regardless of gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, age, neurodiversity, functional impairment, citizenship, or any other aspect which makes them unique. We look forward to welcoming you to our community.

Erasmus University Rotterdam

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) is an internationally oriented university with a strong social orientation in its education and research, as expressed in our mission 'Creating positive societal impact'. EUR is home to 3.700 academics and professionals and almost 33.000 students from more than 140 countries. Everything we do, we do under the credo The Erasmian Way - Making Minds Matter. We're global citizens, connecting, entrepreneurial, open-minded, and socially involved. These Erasmian Values function as our internal compass and create EUR's distinctive and recognizable profile. From these values, with a broad perspective and with an eye for diversity, different backgrounds and opinions, our employees work closely together to solve societal challenges from the dynamic and cosmopolitan city of Rotterdam. Thanks to the high quality and positive societal impact of our research and education, EUR can compete with the top European universities. www.eur.nl.

Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management is part of Erasmus University Rotterdam and is responsible for a bachelor and three (international) master programs on healthcare management, policy, and economics, serving more than 1500 students. The most recent international research audit has assessed ESHPM's research as excellent (20 out of 20 points). ESHPM values empirical, multidisciplinary research with high impact. It is firmly rooted in the world's leading Dutch health care system and actively participates in international research projects, in particular EU funded projects. The position offered is within the Department of Health Services Management & Organization of ESHPM.

Group
Health Services Management & Organisation is responsible for education and research on management and organisation in healthcare. Our aim is to improve the management and organisation of health services to provide the best value for patients/clients and professionals in healthcare. Research of HSMO covers the full width of the healthcare sector, managerial scientific domains, and methodologies (qualitative-, quantitative-, design-, and action research). To a large extent, our research is carried out on innovation of the primary process of care delivery, both within and across organizations. The teaching of the department is aligned with its research and is mainly organized around the MSc program in Healthcare Management, which is the largest program in this domain in Europe, and the BSc program in Health Sciences (Gezondheidswetenschappen, Beleid & Management Gezondheidszorg). Courses taught for instance address Organisational Behavior, Health technologies, Quality & Safety, Innovation, Integrated Care, Operations Management, and Financial Management. The staff of the department includes 4 Full professors, 3 Associate professors, 11 Assistant professors, and 21 PhD's.