Dr Sofia Vougioukalou

(she/her)

Publication

• Date
• Type

Research

Creative Ageing and Social Prescribing (British Academy)

The British Academy Innovation Fellowship scheme is designed to enable researchers in the humanities and social sciences to partner with organisations and business in the creative and cultural, public, private and policy sectors in order to address challenges that require innovative approaches and solutions. It allows an established researcher to work with a UK-based partner organisation on a specified policy or societal challenge. 'Creative ageing and social prescribing: Bridging the gap between diverse service users, service providers and policy makers in Wales', will be carried out partnership with the Arts Council for Wales and 11 organisations across Wales who deliver exemplary creative interventions to older people.

https://www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/funding/innovation-fellowships-scheme-route-a-researcher-led/innovation-fellowships-scheme-route-a-past-awards/innovation-fellowships-scheme-route-a-researcher-led-2021-2022-award-list/

Arts and Health (Arts Council Wales)

I was the lead researcher in Y Lab's Health, Arts, Research and People (HARP) programme. In this programme, I am researching the process and impact of embedding innovation within arts and health practice in 17 teams across Wales. I also convene the Public Involvement and Patient Experience in arts and health Research (PIPER) group which provides the service user voice of expertise to our research and innovation programme.

https://ylab.wales/HARP/researchbriefings

https://ylab.wales/new-public-involvement-group-arts-and-health-research

Dementia and Diversity (Higher Education Funding Council for Wales)

I recently completed a research and engagement project looking at the dementia care experiences of under-represent groups in relation to ethnicity, disability and sexuality. Three performances were developed with public involvement input to communicate the dementia care experiences of D/deaf, ethnic minority and gay communities.

https://ylab.wales/research/dementia-and-diversity

https://ylab.wales/research/dementia-and-diversity/next-kin-performance-and-discussion-about-dementia-ddeaf

https://ylab.wales/using-drama-improve-equalities-dementia-care

Teaching

I am currently in a research-only post and I deliver guest lectures on arts and health, dementia and health inequalities and social prescribing.

Biography

I am a medical anthropologist, with expertise in qualitative health services research with a focus of harnessing and integrating service user and service provider experiences in quality improvement. Arts for heath and creative methodologies are key aspects of this work as they help overcome linguistic and cultural communication barriers, enhance participant’ wellbeing and catalyse impact to professional and lay audiences.

My PhD examined lay understandings of illness and medicinal plant use amongst patients receiving medical care within a range of  cultures. I used an ethnobiological approach which is an interdisciplinary methodology combining anthropology and biology that seeks to bridge cultural and biomedical understandings of biological processes. My research programme builds on this and uses qualitative, quantitative and visual methodologies to understand how do patients, carers and healthcare professionals make sense of chronic illness and service provision in the NHS.

I have previously led a programme of research that used innovative creative methodologies to accelerate the unique potential of public involvement in the transformation of public services. My research as principal investigator includes looking into the unique physical, emotional and financial implications of facing cancer while living alone and understanding the needs of hard-to-reach/seldom-heard dementia communities with additional identities regarding  ethnicity, sexuality or disability.

As co-applicant, it includes a programme of National Institute for Health Research studies examining dementia care in hospitals. The first (NIHR £508k) looked at the unique challenges of managing continence and its impact on personhood and physicality with a further successful grant submission (NIHR £1M) on restraint. In both studies I have led involvement and engagement work-packages which include collaborating with artists patients and carers  to identify and test visual methodologies that have the potential to access hard-to-express experiences of chronic illness.  I am also involved in a cross-service research initiative on the wider role of arts in health for marginalised groups such as refugees, asylum seekers, long-stay hospital patients and care home residents.

I use arts for health to inform health service research, teaching and practice through the development of online platforms. These online resources have been used by educators and policy makers. Since 2016 when I began engaging creative methodologies more formally in health services research. I have also been involved in a participatory action research project in Parc prison where male prisoners were engaged in having a say in the provision of health and well-being services. At the School of Medicine at King’s College London (2011-2013), I evaluated participatory healthcare improvement in two intensive care units and lung cancer services in England

Honours and awards

Awards

2023: Highly Meritorious Contribution Award in Science, Healthcare and Technology, Ethnic Minority Welsh Women's Achievement Association

2022: Celebrating Excellence Award in Civic Mission, Cardiff University

2021: Public Invovement Award, Health and Care Research Wales

2021: Dementia Friendly Wales (2021) Diversity Award - Winner (individual category)

Grant funding

2023-2025:  Tailoring cultural offers with and for diverse older users of social prescribing (TOUS): A realist evaluation. UKRI, UKRI, £396,427, co-applicant

2022-2023: Creative ageing and social prescribing: bridging the gap between diverse service users and policy makers. British Academy Innovation Fellowship, £80,000, PI working with Arts Council Wales

2022-2024: Understanding the everyday use of restrictive practices in the care of people living with dementia during a hospital admission: reducing inappropriate use, identifying good practice and alternative approaches to reduce risk and improve care. NIHR, £1M, co-applicant

2019- 2021: ‘Dementia care experiences – understanding diversity, implementing equality, creating shared learning ’, HEFCW, PI

Nov 2017- 2020: Understanding how to facilitate continence for people with dementia in acute hospital settings: raising awareness and improving care, NIHR (Researcher-led),  £508,000, role: co-applicant with responsibility for patient, carer and public involvement and engagement

Dec 2016-Nov 2017: The human cost of cancer: addressing the unique physical, emotional and financial implications of facing cancer while living alone, Tenovus Cancer Care Innovation Grant, £29,700, PI

2016: Development of a self-sustaining community of Huntington’s disease walkers in Wales, Wellcome Trust ISSF – Public Engagement, £9,700, co-applicant

2012: Assessing participatory research impact and legacy, JISC, £25,000, role: CI with responsibility for health research impact analysis

Academic positions

2023- present: Research Fellow in Adult Social Care, Centre for Adult Social Care Research (CARE) & Centre for Trial Research, School of Medicine, Cardiff University

2022-2023: British Academy Innovation Fellow, Y Lab, School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University

2019-2022: Research Fellow in Arts and Health, Y Lab, School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University

2014- 2019: Research Associate in Health Services Research, School of Healthcare Sciences, Cardiff University

2013 - 2014: Public Engagement Associate for Health Research, Elizabeth Blackwell Institute (Wellcome Trust) & Integrative Epidemiology Unit (MRC), University of Bristol

2011- 2013: Research Associate and Research Design Service Advisor, Department of Primary Care and Public Health Sciences, King’s College London

2010- 2011: Senior Lecturer in Knowledge Transfer, Centre for Health and Social Care Research, Canterbury Christ Church University

2007-2009: Research and Evaluation Consultant, Department of Social Work, Health and Community, Canterbury Christ Church University

2008-2011: Associate Lecturer, Centre for Flexible Learning  & School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent

2004- 2010: Research and Teaching Assistant, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent

Committees and reviewing

Associate Editor for Arts and Health journal.

Manuscript reviewer for PLOS One, BMJ, Journal of Health Organisation and Management, Ethnography, European Journal of Cancer Care.

Supervisions

• Arts and health/creative methodologies
• Cross-cultural healthcare and ethnic minority health
• Dementia

Current supervision

Sami Alanazi

Research student