I am a qualitative researcher whose current work focuses on social care, immigration policy, and the intersections of gender, race, and inequality within the care workforce. I am a Research Fellow at the ESRC Centre for Care, where I explore the intended and unintended consequences of immigration policy changes on the care workforce. I am also a member of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Protection Research Unit (HPRU) in Climate Change and Health Security, where I serve as the Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE) Coordinator for the public engagement panel.
I have also contributed to the NIHR-funded project, developing a validated scale for adult social care work related quality of life, ASCK-WELL, where I developed a logic model for the implementation of a validated wellbeing tool designed for social care workers in the UK. Prior to this, I served as a Research Assistant on the NIHR-funded Adult Social Care Staff Evaluation of Reforms to Training (ASSERT) project, led by Principal Investigator Professor Shereen Hussein.
My research is underpinned by my DrPH (LSHTM), my thesis "Challenges Faced by Women in Social Care Workforce: A Focus on Gender and Race Intersectionality in Training Reforms, with Emphasis on the 2023 English Social Care Sector" makes an original contribution to knowledge by demonstrating that the 2023 policy reforms overlook the structural dimensions of gender, race, and migration, leaving the root causes of social care recruitment and retention challenges unaddressed. The thesis reveals how care workers' experiences and the quality of care provided are adversely affected, and how intersectional disadvantage intensifies these effects. As part of this work, I developed a bespoke framework to support intersectional understanding of devaluation in social care work, which has potential applicability across other public health-related sectors.
During my doctoral studies, I also conceptualised and conducted a qualitative research study on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in Postgraduate Research Degree Admissions at LSHTM (2021–2022). This organisational policy analysis examined LSHTM's formal processes and informal practices to identify existing inequities and biases in admissions procedures.
My current work is informed by a prior background in public health implementation in low-resource settings, with expertise spanning healthcare policy interventions, health systems strengthening, health policy, and decolonising global health. I also have extensive experience advising on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Tuberculosis research and implementation programmes.
I welcome enquiries from MSc and DrPH students interested in pursuing research on social care and public health, in both high- and low-resource settings.
Affiliations
Teaching
- I am a Seminar Leader for the Health Policy, Process and Power module (Face to Face).
- I am a tutor for the Health Systems module on the Distance Learning MSc Global Health Policy.
Research
I am particularly interested in and keen on exploring internal and external factors contributing to inequities in the implementation of policy interventions that impact a range of individuals from different contexts and settings.
Researcher on current and completed funded grants:
NIHR Policy Research Unit in Policy Innovation and Evaluation - NIHR - 1 Jan 2024 - 31 Dec 2028
Centre for Care - University of Sheffield - 1 Nov 2021 - 31 Oct 2026
Developing a validated scale for Adult Social Care worK-related quality of life (ASCK-WELL) - NIHR Research for Patient Benefit: Research for Social Care - 4 Feb 2024 - 28 Feb 2026 (completed)
Evaluation of Adult Social care Staff Evaluation of Reforms to Training (ASSERT) - NIHR - 11 Sep 2023 - 10 Jun 2024 (completed)
Selected Publications
A Focus on Gender and ‘Race’ Intersectionality in Training Reforms, with
Emphasis on the 2023 English Social Care Sector