Tommer Spence
I am a final-year PhD student in the Division of Health Sciences at Warwick Medical School. My research is a mixed methods study of internet-based testing for sexually transmitted infections in Birmingham, which sees individuals ordering self-sampling kits online, obtaining samples themselves before returning the kit and receiving their results by text.
Although the use of internet-based testing is growing rapidly, there is limited qualitative data on the impact of its use, particularly among some marginalised populations. I am using focus groups, interviews and a discrete choice experiment to explore perceptions and experiences of internet-based testing among people who both have and have not used sexual health services.
My background is primarily in the third sector, with a focus on equalities and health, and I recently undertook a secondment to a parliamentary select committee funded by Research Councils UK. Alongside my PhD, I serve as a trustee for a national helpline network.
Supervisors
Professor Frances Griffiths (Warwick Medical School)
Professor Jonathan Ross (University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust)
Funding
My research is jointly funded by the Warwick ESRC Doctoral Training Centre, the STI Research Foundation (STIRF) and University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust.
Tommer Spence
T dot Spence at warwick dot ac dot uk
Division of Health Sciences
Warwick Medical School
University of Warwick
Coventry
CV4 7AL
UK