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I am a Registered Nurse (Adult) and Specialist Community Public Health Nurse (Health Visitor), researcher and academic, with expertise in research methods, evidence-based practice and health visiting.
My research focuses on infant mental health and the generation, synthesis and application of evidence to improve outcomes for babies, children, young people and their families. I have a particular interest in the use of critical social theories to support knowledge creation, challenge assumptions and explore how social, cultural and structural contexts shape health, care and lived experiences. I am committed to collaborative and inclusive approaches to research, working in partnership with people who use services, families and practitioners to co-produce research projects that are relevant, meaningful and responsive to the needs and priorities of those most affected.
My career spans clinical practice, public health leadership, research and higher education, providing a broad perspective on how evidence can be generated, critically interpreted and applied to improve healthcare practice, education and policy. I have worked as a Health Visitor and Consultant Public Health Nurse and have held academic and research positions at the University of West London, the University of Hertfordshire and the University of Oxford.
I spent three years as a Senior Postdoctoral Researcher at the Centre for Evidence-Based Intervention within the Department of Social Policy and Intervention at the University of Oxford, working with Professor Jane Barlow. During this time, I contributed to a range of research projects focused on health visiting and infant mental health, strengthening my expertise in research design, evidence synthesis and the application of research to practice and policy.
I contribute to research-informed teaching across nursing and healthcare programmes. My teaching interests include research methods, qualitative research, evidence-based practice, research ethics, critical appraisal, research design, evidence synthesis and knowledge translation.
I am committed to supporting students and practitioners to develop the knowledge, skills and confidence needed to critically engage with research and use evidence effectively in practice.
My research employs qualitative, quantitative and mixed-methods approaches, with particular interests in infant mental health, health visiting interventions, workforce development and public involvement and engagement in research. I have contributed to a range of national and international studies, including evaluations of early years workforce models, health visiting interventions such as the Alarm Distress Baby Scale, and research exploring the experiences and priorities of underserved parents and caregivers.
I currently lead a Campbell Evidence and Gap Map examining health visiting interventions for children aged 0 to 5 years and their families in the UK, working in partnership with colleagues from the University of Oxford, King’s College London and the Institute of Health Visiting. I have secured and contributed to externally funded research from organisations including the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), the Department of Health and Social Care and the Oxford Health NIHR Biomedical Research Centre.
I am particularly interested in co-produced, interdisciplinary research and in translating evidence into policy, professional education and practice to improve the health, wellbeing and life chances of babies, children, young people and their families.
My work has been published in peer-reviewed journals including Nurse Education Today, Journal of Clinical Nursing, BMJ Paediatrics Open and Primary Health Care Research & Development. I have also contributed to books, research reports, evidence syntheses and national research outputs.
I regularly undertake peer-reviewing for journals including Journal of Health Visiting, Child and Family Social Work and Child Abuse Review.
