This research advances health equity for neurological patients by improving health literacy, engaging communities through participatory research, and implementing evidence-based healthcare practices. By designing communication around patients' lived experiences, it aims to improve treatment adherence, reduce health disparities, strengthen caregiver support, and create more accessible, person-centered healthcare systems.

This research quantitatively demonstrates disparities in healthcare quality experienced by transgender patients. Using objective clinical quality measures rather than personal testimony alone, it shows transgender patients receive recommended treatments less often. Encouragingly, providers with greater experience treating transgender patients deliver more equitable care, highlighting the importance of education and clinical exposure.

This research examines how continuity of care at Federally Qualified Health Centers affects low-income adults as they age into Medicare eligibility. Using national Medicare and Medicaid data, it investigates whether maintaining long-term primary care relationships improves health outcomes, informing policies that strengthen community healthcare services and support healthy ageing.

This research examines how changing reproductive laws affect access to IVF following the Alabama embryo personhood ruling. Using interviews, observation, and policy analysis, it reveals how legal uncertainty threatens fertility treatment, reproductive autonomy, and healthcare access, while informing policies that better protect reproductive rights and family-building opportunities.

This thesis examines who turns to AI for mental health support, rather than whether AI can be a therapist. Drawing on TherapyGPT forum analysis and ongoing experiments, the research identifies fear of judgment, trust in AI and past therapist failures as possible drivers of AI therapy use.

This research develops nanobubble-enhanced ultrasound imaging as an accessible alternative to MRI for cancer diagnosis. Tiny gas-filled nanoparticles amplify ultrasound signals and improve image quality, particularly in prostate cancer. The technology could reduce diagnostic delays, lower costs, and provide high-quality medical imaging to more patients worldwide.

This research explores how to improve STI testing uptake within African and Caribbean communities in the UK. Using evidence reviews, interviews, and co-production workshops guided by the ACE framework, the project develops community-informed sexual health interventions designed to increase trust, accessibility, and acceptance of STI testing while reducing stigma and health inequalities.

This research examines harm reduction practices and their limitations within systems of prohibition. While designed to support people without judgment, institutional rules and boundaries restrict access. Case studies reveal how these constraints can increase risks, including overdose, highlighting a gap between harm reduction philosophy and real-world implementation.

This research explores brain stimulation as a safe, low-cost alternative to medication for children with neurological and mental health conditions. Despite promising results across disorders, only a small fraction of studies involve children. The work aims to expand evidence and access, improving global treatment options, especially for low-income populations.

This research examines parents’ experiences of early speech and language assessments. It highlights emotional stress, inequities in access, and lack of diverse representation in existing research. By incorporating diverse parental perspectives, the study aims to inform resources, clinical practice, and policy to improve engagement and outcomes in speech therapy.