I joined the SAPC executive and became the SAPC regional meeting representative in 2021. In terms of background, I am an exercise scientist and clinical trialist and have worked in academic primary care for 17 years.
My undergraduate degree in Sport & Exercise Science (2000) and PhD in Spinal Biomechanics (2005) were gained from Manchester Metropolitan University. I undertook my post-doc at Leicester University and then joined Keele University in 2007. I am currently a Senior Research Fellow and Postgraduate Research Lead in the School of Medicine.
My main research interest is the management of long-term conditions in primary care and developing and evaluating interventions to optimise primary care management. I have experience of a range of research methodologies, including cross-sectional surveys, qualitative studies, systematic reviews and randomised controlled trials.
I was part of a team working on a NIHR programme grant to optimise osteoarthritis care in line with national guidelines and my specific contribution was to bring a focus on the role of physical activity as key component of self-management. I have also worked on projects funded by the NIHR School for Primary Care Research, NIHR CLAHRC for the West Midlands, and Versus Arthritis.
As an exercise scientist by background, I am committed to championing the promotion of physical activity in primary care. In 2018, I founded, and now chair, the SAPC Exercise / Physical Activity as Medicine Special Interest Group. I was also recently appointed to the role of Primary Health Care Scientists (PHoCuS) Champion (North) for SAPC.