I joined LSHTM in 2020 after completing a MSc in Animal Behaviour and Welfare and a PhD in Veterinary Epidemiology at Queen's University Belfast. My PhD focussed on past and projected impacts of climate extremes on the health and welfare of intensively farmed livestock. I have continued my research interests in environmental epidemiology at LSHTM, firstly as a Research Fellow on the CHAMNHA (Climate, Heat and Maternal and Neonatal Health in Africa) project and, more recently, on the HIGH (Heat Indicators for Global Health) Horizons project. I am particularly interested in the development and application of statistical methods to assess the impacts of weather variability and climate change on maternal and neonatal health in sub-Saharan Africa. My recent research has focussed on quantifying the effects of ambient heat exposure during pregnancy on risk of adverse birth outcomes and maternal complications, and how extreme hot weather during the postpartum period affects maternal behaviours, including infant feeding practices.

I also have ten years experience in the community and voluntary sector; providing education, support, and advocacy services for disadvantaged young people, individuals living with HIV, and persons affected by mental ill health. In 2009, I co-designed and delivered the first rapid HIV testing service in Northern Ireland, which continues to operate today.