I am a public health researcher with experience of working in the NHS and in the Industry.

My research uses an interdisciplinary approach to supporting communities, service users and care organisations with specific focus on public health and integrated care. I am committed to improving outcomes for patients/users and communities within sustainable and financially viable health and care systems in the UK and internationally. My research portfolio is purposefully sensitive to the national and international priorities in health and social care so that it informs policy and practice whilst the priorities remain topical.

To achieve the above, I have taken executive roles in organisations with significant impact on the regional health and social care economies. As Director of the Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes Integrated Care System Research and Innovation Hub (BLMK ICS R&I Hub), I work with several partners in Integrated Care Systems to find innovative solutions and shape a systemic response to several priorities in health and social care. I have strategically placed my current Faculty and University in a position to practically lead an Integrated Care agenda that contributes to evidence informed decision making in commissioning and delivery of care.

Considering the current interdependent health environment, one of the aims that stem from my wider research objectives is to increase and sustainably foster the capacity for high-quality applied research and knowledge exchange across geographic, clinical and disciplinary borders, fostering effective collaborations driven by inclusion, equal access, and participation. I was recently appointed Chair of the East of England Partnership for Innovation in Integrated Care (EPIIC). EPIIC is a major regional collaboration between six East of England universities, supported by approximately £20 million in NHS funding, designed to generate evidence that supports health and social care decision-making across the region’s Integrated Care Systems (ICSs). 

Engaging diverse populations in research is a central principle in our Research Institute and Centres and informs almost everything that we do. Our research practice is underpinned by community partnerships via several channels and via the University’s civic agreements to ensure that our research meets the needs of diverse populations and has an impact. In addition, we uphold EDI policy and advocacy to foster an inclusive, diverse, and multi-perspective culture in practice.

Please see a synopsis of current and past contributions below:

Internal roles in the University of Bedfordshire

• Director, Integrated Care Research Hub
• Director, Research Centre for Health Service Organisation and Delivery
• Post Graduate Research Lead, Institute for Health Research
• Chair of the Institute for Health Research Ethics Committee
• Deputy Director, Research Graduate School (Interim 01/2015 – 07/2015)

Previous roles (selected)

• Imperial College London - Deputy Director eHealth Unit
• Imperial College London - Deputy Director NIHR Research Design Service
• NHS Hammersmith and Fulham - Head of Education
• City University London - Director of Postgraduate Programmes in Health Services Research

External roles

• European Union, European Institute of Innovation and Technology – Scientific Evaluator.
• BioMed Central (BMC), Health Services Research, Editorial Board Member.
• Buckinghamshire Health and Social Care Academy, Head of Faculty of Research and Knowledge Exchange
• National Institute for Health Research (NIHR RfPB). Member of Advisory Board East of England.
• Pharmaceutical Journal, UK, Advisory Board.
• Member of the Scientific Committee of IADIS Conference.
• Specialist Public Health Advisor for Cansr.com
• NIHR-funded study WRAPED Data and Ethics Steering Committee.
• Public Health Academic Forum Executive Committee Public Health England (East of England).
• Innovate UK funded study Steering Group.
• Operational Board Buckinghamshire Health and Social Care Academy.
• Charles University in Prague, Doctorate School Steering Committee and Advisor on Evidence Based Practice.
• Talking Takes Off Research and Evaluation Committee Funded by Department for Education.
• Specialist Public Health Advisor on Innovate UK-funded study: Track and Know.
• Specialist Public Health Advisor to UKeMed for COVID-19 teaching programme in Chinese Hospitals.
• Combined Universities Group (Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Oxfordshire).
• NHS North West London Integrated Care Research and Evaluation Committee.
• NIHR’s Research Design Service (RDS) London Steering Group.
• London Deanery, Academic GPs Trainer.
• University College London, Honorary Senior Lecturer, Institute of Orthopaedics and Musculoskeletal Science
• East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust, Honorary Clinical Research Fellow.
• University of California Los Angeles, Department of Public Health, Visiting Internship.
• Brunel Research Group of Health Technologies (BRiGHT), Founding Member.

Consultancy roles

• Cabinet Office UK - Advisor on community care planning.
• Expert Evaluator EIT Health - European Commission.
• Office for Science UK - Advisor on integrated care.
• Ministry of Health, United Arab Emirates – Policy and process change for integrated eHealth implementation.
• Ministry of Health, Malaysia – Analysis of challenges in implementing a nationwide eHealth programme.
• Institute of Medical Research and Education, Athens, Greece - Developing eLearning applications for teaching in Public Health (Consultancy and teaching).
• Health Ministry of Japan - Knowledge exchange forum for eHealth implementation.
• Cansr.com international online platform for second MDT opinion for people with cancer
• UKeMed - Public Health Advisor.
• Health Innovation and Education Cluster (HIEC) – Developing an information database for healthcare education in Northwest London.
• West London Research Network (WeLReN) – Patient and public involvement in developing integrated care pathways and clinician education tools.
• NHS North West London – Educating front-of-house staff in primary care.

I am inariably committed to postgraduate research. I enjoy working closely with students and being meaningfully challenged and challenging. This principle, combined with a liberal but structured approach to learning, form the core of my teaching and doctoral supervision. I have led the development of a discipline-specific programme for Personal and Professional Development for the doctoral students of the Institute for Health Research. I have worked with 13 PhD students and one NIHR Fellow to successful completion.