Helen Higham
Director of the OxSTaR Centre
- Associate Professor
- Consultant Anaesthetist
We focus on improving quality and safety in healthcare through research, education and innovation.
Helen is an Associate Professor in NDCN and a Consultant Anaesthetist in the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. She has always had a keen interest in medical education and has been the Director of Undergraduate Teaching in the Nuffield Division of Anaesthetics since she took up her post in 2001. She has been the Director of the multi-award winning Oxford Simulation, Teaching and Research Centre (OxSTaR) since it opened in 2008.
Helen was a founding member of the Executive Committee for the Association of Simulated Practice in Healthcare and was President between 2014 and 2017. She was appointed Associate Dean for Simulation and Patient Safety in NHSE Thames Valley in 2021 and remains active nationally in strategic planning for simulation based education.
OxSTaR's research group comprises a diverse array of clinicians, psychologists and human factors scientists. Our primary research interests are patient safety and clinical education research and we have many projects underway in both areas including:
- Measuring and improving team performance in healthcare
- The use of simulation methodologies to design and improve patient pathways
- Virtual reality as a tool in clinical education and assessment
- Artificial intelligence to support decision making in clinical practice
- The use of simulation to accelerate learning for surgical specialities post-pandemic
- Improving consent processes and patient engagement in clinical research using digital technologies
- Decision making and prioritisation in complex, dynamic work environments
Recent publications
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Adopting human factors in early phase and experimental medicine research: A nested pilot study observing controlled human infection with SARS-CoV-2
Preprint
Higham H. et al, (2023)
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Artificial Intelligence for Anatomical Structure Identification on Ultrasound in Regional Anaesthesia: A Scoping Review Protocol
Preprint
Bowness JS. et al, (2023)
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A study of validity and usability evidence for non-technical skills assessment tools in simulated adult resuscitation scenarios.
Journal article
Higham H. et al, (2023), BMC Med Educ, 23
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Cognitive aids in the management of clinical emergencies: a systematic review.
Journal article
Greig PR. et al, (2022), Anaesthesia
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Recommendations for anatomical structures to identify on ultrasound for the performance of intermediate and advanced blocks in ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia.
Journal article
Ashken T. et al, (2022), Reg Anesth Pain Med, 47, 762 - 772