Ms Yoshiko Sakuma
Res - LSHTM-Nagasaki University Joint PhD Programme for Global Health - Infectious & Tropical Diseases
United Kingdom
Yoshiko is a trained physiotherapist with experience in both the UK and Japan. She is currently a Research Fellow and PhD student at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM).
Her research focuses on participatory and community-driven approaches to sexual and reproductive health among people with disabilities. She is a mixed-methods researcher and employs methods such as crowdsourcing, designathon (hackathons guided by design thinking), semi-structured, and in-depth interviews to explore equitable access to healthcare. Her ongoing works investigate disability-inclusive social protection, rehabilitation system establishment, and barriers and facilitators of cervical cancer screening among women with disabilities, particularly in the UK and Japan, among other settings.
Beyond academic research, she is also actively contributing as a core member of the youth co-creation practical guide by TRD/WHO/UNICEF (https://tdr.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240117563), with particular emphasis on methodological approaches to the inclusive engagement of diverse and often marginalised populations in healthcare research, including people with disabilities.
Affiliations
Teaching
LSHTM
- Tutoring/MSc project supervision - MSc Public Health, MSc Reproductive & Sexual Health Research
- 1804 Sexual Health - Seminar Lead
Others
- Adjunct lecturer - International University of Health and Welfare
- Invited Talks - Japanese Physical Therapy Association, UK Clinical Research Collaboration, British Association for Sexual Health and HIV, The University of Tokyo, PPI Japan, Internatonal Univeristy of Health and Welfare, Osaka Metropolitan University
Research
Disability, Sexual and Reproductive Health, Participatory Research, Rehabilitation