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James Lewis

Professor James Lewis

(he/him)

Professor

School of Social Sciences

Email
LewisJ78@cardiff.ac.uk
Telephone
+44 29208 79874
Campuses
sbarc|spark, Room 03.14, Maindy Road, Cathays, Cardiff, CF24 4HQ
Glamorgan Building, Room 2.41A, King Edward VII Avenue, Cardiff, CF10 3WA
Users
Available for postgraduate supervision

Overview

I am a professor in the School of Social Sciences, and a statistician and epidemiologist by training. My research is focused mainly on better understanding public health challenges and designing and evaluating relevant interventions.

From March 2018 to September 2023 I was the director of Cardiff University's Y Lab - the Public Services Innovation Lab for Wales. At Y Lab we supported and promoted experimentation and innovation in public services in Wales, and conducted research on the hows and whys of public services innovation. Please see our website ylab.wales for more details.

Prior to this, I worked as a statistician and epidemiologist at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine for 12 years. I conducted research in global health, focusing on pragmatic evaluations of health system innovations across a range of disease areas and geographies. I lived in Johannesburg for seven years.

Publication

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2004

2003

Articles

Research

@ylabwales we conducted research on public service innovation, including through several of our programmes, including:

The primary evaluation methodologies I have applied in global health have been cluster randomised trials and stepped wedge trials, always in interdisciplinary teams. I lived and worked in Johannesburg for seven years and I have also worked on projects in Peru, Burkina Faso, India, China, Zimbabwe and Zambia.

Teaching

Undergraduate

Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics (Year 1, Module Convener 2023)

Knowing the Social World: Online and Offline Surveys (Year 2, Module Convener 2024)

Postgraduate

Evaluation: Developing and Evaluating Interventions in Complex Social Systems (MSc, Teaching 2023)

Biography

Education

2001 –2005: PhD in Epidemiology at Imperial College London. “Behavioural, demographic and social risk factors for HIV infection in rural Zimbabwe.” Received MRC funding.

1999 –2000: MSc in Applied Statistics at the University of Oxford. Grade: Distinction. Gutierrez Toscano prize for joint top result. Received EPSRC funding.

1996 – 1999: BA (Hons) in Mathematics at the University of Cambridge. Class: 2:1.

Professional memberships

Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society

Academic positions

2016 – 2018: Associate Professor, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Based in London.

2013 – 2018: Deputy Director, Centre for Evaluation, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

2013 – 2016: Senior Lecturer, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Based in London.

2012 – 2013: Lecturer, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Based in London.

2007 – 2012: Lecturer, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Based at Aurum Institute, Johannesburg.

2005 – 2007: Research Fellow, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Based at Aurum Institute, Johannesburg.

2001: Research assistant, National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, Australian National University, Canberra.

2000 – 2001: Research assistant, Centre for Socioeconomic Research, Welsh School of Pharmacy, University of Wales, Cardiff.

Committees and reviewing

Member of the Welsh Government's Innovation Advisory Council for Wales 

Statistical reviewer for the Lancet journals

Supervisions

I am interested in supervising PhD and Professional Doctorate students in the areas of public health evaluations, epidemiology, quantitative public health, public services innovation and social innovation.

Current supervision

Becky Parish

Becky Parish

Research student

Past projects

  • Kavi Velen's PhD on "GOOD to GREAT: Strategies to improve the detection of TB amongst household contacts in South Africa"
  • Cara O'Connor's PhD on "Mobile Phone Adherence Support for HIV Patients in Manila, Philippines"
  • Becky Parish's professional doctorate on "Informed Choice or Informed Voice? A consideration of the impact of proposed NHS service developments on divided communities"

I was a statistical advisor for six PhD students at LSHTM, a role similar to that of co-supervisor.