Liverpool Research Society is dedicated to promoting medical research. This February, they were delighted to welcome attendees to their 8th Annual Research Conference, LivResCon8: Learning Through Research.
Student Doctor Aarifa Khanom who was Conference Chair this year reports on the conference which was held in person, on the University of Liverpool campus, for the first time in two years.
“With an audience that included medical students, dentists, biological science students and vets, we were delighted to welcome three excellent keynote speakers and two workshop facilitators who presented engaging sessions from diverse research backgrounds.
The event was sponsored by INSPIRE, a national initiative which promotes and facilitates undergraduate research, by encouraging students to involve themselves in their own research work.
We worked in close collaboration with University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) medical school, who were an incredible support in organising and facilitating the conference and joined in with enthusiasm on conference day.
We were thankful that the in-person conference enabled us to interact with delegates and speakers outside of Zoom’s chat-box function. However, as Liverpool Research Society has always prided itself on welcoming student attendees and speakers from abroad, we opted for offering a hybrid morning session enabling attendees, including students as far as the UAE, to tune in and take part.
Inspirational keynote speakers
Dr Eduard Shantsila, Primary Care Physician at Brownlow Health and Senior Clinical Lecturer in Primary Care, spoke about how his clinical work plays into his academic interest in cardiology, enabling population-level research, evidenced by his work in the IMPRESS-AF RCT and the E-ECHOES study.
Dr Kris D’Aout at LivResCon8
Dr Kris D’Aout, Biomechanist and part of the Evolutionary Morphology and Biomechanics Group at the Institute of Life Course and Medical Sciences at the University of Liverpool, delivered a fascinating talk on the quality-of-life implications of poor gait control, and his public-health research on footwear.
Mr Jayden Gittens (link), a PhD student at the University of Liverpool, discussed his work in metastatic rectal cancer.
His talk offered unique and inspiring insights on how undergraduates can create research opportunities for themselves.
After completing his first three years of medical school at Liverpool and an intercalated Research master's, Jayden got the opportunity to study his PhD.
Interactive workshops
Our first workshop was delivered by Specialised Foundation Programme (SFP) trainee, Dr Devika Verma from the University Hospitals of Derby & Burton. This excellent interactive workshop provided students with advice on how to get onto the SFP, as well as important clinical knowledge applicable for all soon-to-be doctors.
Dr Devika Verma provides useful SFP application tips
Our second workshop in statistical programming was delivered online by Ms Natalia Ladyka, a PhD student at the University of Toronto, Canada.
Using R Studio, students were able to follow along using their own laptops as Ms Ladyka provided an introduction to essential statistical skills required to conduct research.
We ran both poster and oral presentations and would like to congratulate all the delegates who presented at LivResCon8.
Students present research posters over lunch
This year’s winners were:
Poster Presentations
- First Place Poster: Ayn Panesa, University of Liverpool
- Second Place Poster: Maisy Lopez Piggot, University of Liverpool
- Third Place Poster: Alice Kirkup, University of Liverpool
Oral Presentations
- First Place Oral Presentation: Gabriela Franco Katz, UCLan
- Joint Second Place Oral Presentations: Marwan Al-Munaer, University of Liverpool & Jessica LaCourse, University of Liverpool
A huge thank you to all attendees, presenters, our UCLan collaborators and INSPIRE. We hope you can join us again next year at LivResCon9!”
Discover more
- Passionate about medical research? See how INSPIRE (link) can support your passion through conference funding, research events and activities and studentships.
- Interested in learning more about Liverpool Research Society? Check out their page on the Guild website (link), and follow them on Instagram (link), Facebook (link) and Twitter (link).