Lesley is an NIHR Dementia Research (DEM-COMM) Fellow at the Cicely Saunders Institute of Palliative Care, Policy & Rehabilitation, and the Health & Social Care Workforce Research Unit at The Policy Institute, King’s College London.

She uses mixed methods research to contribute to advancing knowledge on health and social care equity for people affected by dementia. Her current work involves exploring palliative dementia care and service access towards the end of life. She jointly coordinates the Dementia Community Research Network (DCRN), which comprises community, research and public partners to improve equity of research involvement among people with dementia from minoritised ethnic communities.

Lesley has a keen interest in policy and co-leads the Service Development & Policy module for the MSc in Palliative Care. She has previously worked in the House of Lords as one of the King’s Parliamentary Research Interns, and the Royal College of Psychiatrists and St Andrew’s Healthcare as one of the National Medical Director’s Clinical Fellows.

By background, Lesley is a medical doctor and psychology graduate. She holds a PhD in palliative dementia care and has a master's in clinical leadership.

Research interests

• Palliative dementia care
• Palliative and end-of-life care 
• Health and social care inequities and equitable access
• Health policy and systems research
• Community engagement and coproduction

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Teaching

Palliative Care MSc:

• Module co-lead: Service Development and Policy module
• Supervision: Postgraduate student dissertations
• Session teaching: Research Methods & Statistics, and Service Development & Policy modules