Top
Skip to Content
LOGO(small) - Queen's University Belfast
  • Our x-twitter
LOGO(large) - Queen's University Belfast

Centre for Public Health

  • Home
  • About
    • About Us
    • Education
    • Find a PhD Supervisor
    • Nursing Mothers' Rooms and Breastfeeding Facilities
  • Research
    • Cancer Epidemiology
    • Epidemiology & Public Health
    • Health Services & Global Health
    • Public Health Nutrition
  • Events
  • News
  • Contact Us
    • Staff
  • Showcasing our research
    • Podcast - The Science of Ageing Well
  • Related Links
  • Home
  • About
    • About Us
    • Education
    • Find a PhD Supervisor
    • Nursing Mothers' Rooms and Breastfeeding Facilities
  • Research
    • Cancer Epidemiology
    • Epidemiology & Public Health
    • Health Services & Global Health
    • Public Health Nutrition
  • Events
  • News
  • Contact Us
    • Staff
  • Showcasing our research
    • Podcast - The Science of Ageing Well
  • Related Links
  • Our x-twitter
In This Section
  • Aging Research Interest Forum
  • Complexity Science
  • Administrative Data Research Centre Northern Ireland (ADRC NI)
  • Epidemiology & Public Health - Showcasing our research

  • Home
  • Centre for Public Health
  • Research
  • Epidemiology & Public Health

Epidemiology & Public Health

The Epidemiology and Public Health Group examines upstream and downstream determinants of the health of the public i.e. those acting at the level of society and those relating to individuals. Strengths of the group are in cardiovascular disease and diabetes epidemiology, the social determinants of public health including physical health and mental health, administrative data research, rare diseases, the development and translation of public health interventions and increasingly in complex methodologies such as Causal Inference and Agent Based Modelling.

The group has a wide network of international collaborations. Our researchers are members of the management committees of large consortia for the study of cardiovascular disease in large cohorts across Europe (“MORGAM”). The PRIME Study, a prospective study of risk factors for cardiovascular disease in middle-aged men has been active since 1980. An underlying theme which has emerged strongly in the recent years has been research on ageing with our own new large cohort study, the Northern Ireland Cohort for the Longitudinal Study of Ageing (NICOLA) funded by OFMDFM, UKCRC, ESRC and Atlantic Philanthropies; and a Europe wide intervention addressing physical activity and sedentary behaviour in older adults ("SITLESS"). Our researchers also contribute to CPIT III, a multi-centre phase III randomised controlled trial, which will compare smoking cessation rates in late pregnancy and 6 months post-partum between women offered routine NHS stop smoking support and those offered the same NHS support plus additional financial incentives.

The Centre is a member of HEPA Europe, a European network of experts on physical activity for health, which works closely with the European section of the World Health Organisation.

Methodological research in the group has been strengthened through the recent award by the ESRC of the Administrative Data Research Centre for Northern Ireland – a collaboration of both Universities and the Northern Ireland Statistics Research Agency.

Staff members of the Epidemiology and Public Health Research Group

 

Amy Jayne McKnight

Professor Amy Jayne McKnight

Epidemiology and Public Health Research Group Co-Lead

Professor Ruth Hunter

Epidemiology and Public Health Research Group Co-Lead

       

‌The current academic staff members of the Epidemiology and Public Health Research Group are outlined below:

Academic Staff

Professor AJ McKnight (Research Group Co-Lead)

Professor Ruth Hunter (Research Group Co-Lead)

Dr Emma Cunningham

Dr Leandro Garcia

Dr Joseph Kane

Professor Frank Kee

Dr Aideen Maguire

Professor Peter Maxwell

Dr Bernadette McGuinness

Dr Gareth McKay

Dr Fionnuala Mone

Professor Tony O’Neill

Dr Lynsey Patterson

Dr Laura Smyth

Dr David Wright

Postdoctoral Research Fellows:

Dr Zeinab Abdelrahman

Dr Selin Akaraci

Dr Thomas Cahill

Dr Emma Cassinelli

Dr Aritra Deb

Dr Claire Hill

Dr Sophie Jones

Dr Linda Kirkpatrick

Dr Akansha Mahesh Naraindas

Mr Calum Marr

Dr Sarah McKenna

Dr Charlotte Neville

Dr Chioma Nwaru

Dr Leeanne O'Hara 

Dr Niamh O'Kane

Dr Emma Ross

Dr Chris Tate

Dr Ngan Tran

Students

Ghada Abozaid: Principal Supervisor: Professor AJ McKnight

PhD Title: Towards Accessibility for Rare Diseases RD(s) Therapies in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA)

Nawab Ali: Principal Supervisor: Professor AJ McKnight

PhD Title: Developing Patient Registers and Mapping Genetic Disorders in Northern Ireland: Integrating Electronic Health Records, Genetic Testing and Role of Artificial Intelligence

Noura Almoither: Principal Supervisor: Dr Joe Kane

PhD Title: The incidence and risk factors of common mental health problems among women in Saudi Arabia

Samuel Bell: Principal Supervisor: Dr Gareth McKay

PhD Title: Why do some kidney diseases recur following kidney transplantation? A review of glomerulonephritis in Northern Ireland (NI) and assessment of the implications for recurrent glomerulonephritis in kidney transplant recipients.

Helena Brown: Principal Supervisor: Professor AJ McKnight

PhD Title: To maximise participation of paediatric patients with rare kidney conditions in clinical trials

Sarah Brown: Principal Supervisor: Professor AJ McKnight

PhD Title: Innovative Multiomic Approaches to Improve Early Detection and Diagnosis of Rare Kidney Conditions: A Transdisciplinary Approach

Rabia Butt: Principal Supervisor: Dr Leandro Garcia

PhD Title: Reducing Health Inequalities and Improving Care Pathways for Head and Neck Cancer in Northern Ireland: A Mixed-method, Systems-based Approach

Sinead Donnelly: Principal Supervisor: Professor Peter Passmore

PhD Title: Which symptoms matter most to people affected by dementia with Lewy bodies?

Michael Corr: Principal Supervisor: Dr Gareth McKay

PhD Title: Why Do Kidney Transplants Fail So Early in Young People?

Rebecca Egerton: Principal Supervisor: Dr Emma Cunningham

PhD Title: Predictors of cognitive resilience in longitudinal cohort studies

Ruth Fergie: Principal Supervisor: Dr Emma Cunningham

PhD Title: Frailty: Why does it matter in Kidney Transplantation?

Gemma Ferguson: Principal Supervisor: Dr Fionnuala Mone

PhD Title: Establishing an optimal first trimester aneuploidy screening approach – a mixed methods implementation science study

Sophie Glover: Principal Supervisor: Dr Emma Cunningham

PhD Title: Molecular profiling of urban environmental impacts: understanding the biology underlying environmental stress and identifying biomarkers of resilience to non-communicable diseases

Kelly Gow: Principal Supervisor: Dr Aideen Maguire

PhD Title: Understanding self-harm and suicide in Northern Ireland: a quantitative data linkage approach

Lucy Hickson: Principal Supervisor: Professor AJ McKnight

PhD Title: Data-driven Discoveries to Support Diagnosis and Treatment of Rare Diseases

Jacob Illyuk: Principle Supervisor: Professor Ruth Hunter

PhD Title: Understanding the Molecular Biology Underlying Environmental Exposure and Identifying Biomarkers of Resilience to Non-communicable Diseases 

Turlough Maguire: Principal Supervisor: Dr Bernadette McGuinness

PhD Title: A mixed methods project exploring the use and risks associated with overactive bladder (OAB) medication in adult women in Northern Ireland

Callum Mitchell: Principal Supervisor: Dr Lynsey Patterson

PhD Title: Using data science to understand childhood vaccine uptake and inform interventions in Northern Ireland

Claire Potter: Principal Supervisor: Dr Bernadette McGuinness

PhD Title: The ELECTRA Study: Early Life strEss, CogniTive Resilience and Ageing

Mariam Prasad: Principal Supervisor: Professor AJ McKnight

PhD Title: Ethical, legal, social considerations for genetic testing and treatment of rare diseases

Katie Quinn: Principal Supervisor: Professor AJ McKnight

PhD Title: Exploring the impact of Fragile X Syndrome

Carys Räsänen-Young: Principal Supervisor: Professor AJ McKnight

PhD Title: Molecular profiling and social circumstances: promoting health across three countries

Kelly Reilly: Principal Supervisor: Dr Fionnuala Mone

PhD Title: Assessment of cardiovascular biomarkers in the maternal and fetal circulation in cardiac disease & pre-eclampsia – a cohort study

Louis Simon: Principal Supervisor: Professor Ruth Hunter

PhD Title: Understanding invasive species and risks to human health as the environment and climate changes

Sarah Sonner: Principal Supervisor: Dr Fionnuala Mone

PhD Title: Obtaining a genetic Diagnostic Yield via assessment of in-utero Scan findings prior to the introduction of SEquencing retrospectivelY (ODYSSEY) – a cohort study  

May Surridge-Smith: Principal Supervisor: Professor AJ McKnight

PhD Title: Multiomic signatures associated with healthy ageing and age-related conditions

Shea Walsh: Principal Supervisor: Professor Ruth Hunter

PhD Title: Exploring the impact of biodiversity actions on human health in our cities

Christopher Wooster: Principal Supervisor: Professor AJ McKnight

PhD Title: Exploring Incidence, Prevalence, and Molecular Risk Factors for Rare Kidney Diseases

Georgia Williams: Principal Supervisor: Professor Ruth Hunter

PhD Title: Buzz Off! Understanding Public Perceptions of Vector Borne Disease and Control in the UK to Inform Public Health Interventions

Ebru Yilmaz: Principal Supervisor: Dr David Wright

PhD Title: Using Data Science and Systems Engineering to Plan Patient-centred Outpatient Healthcare Services

Epidemiology & Public Health
  • Research
  • Aging Research Interest Forum
  • Complexity Science
  • Administrative Data Research Centre Northern Ireland (ADRC NI)
  • Epidemiology & Public Health - Showcasing our research
QUB Logo
Contact Us

Centre for Public Health
Institute of Clinical Sciences
Royal Victoria Hospital
Belfast
BT12 6BA

Phone: +44 (0) 28 9097 6350

Quick Links

  • Home
  • Research
  • About

 

© Queen's University Belfast 2024
  • Privacy and cookies
  • Website accessibility
  • Freedom of information
  • Modern slavery statement
  • Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
  • University Policies and Procedures
Information
  • Privacy and cookies
  • Website accessibility
  • Freedom of information
  • Modern slavery statement
  • Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
  • University Policies and Procedures

© Queen's University Belfast 2024

Manage cookies