Rate My Professor Eleanor Bradley

Professor Eleanor Bradley is a Professor of Health Psychology at the University of Worcester, where she joined in 2013. She holds a BSc (Hons) in Human Psychology from Loughborough University (1995), an MSc in Counselling and Psychology from Manchester Metropolitan University (1997), and a PhD in Health Psychology from Staffordshire University (2001). Prior to her current position, she served as Head of Research and Development for a large adult mental healthcare NHS Trust and as Professor of Healthcare Research and Evaluation at Staffordshire University. Currently, she is the College Director of Research and Knowledge Exchange for the College of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, Evaluation Hub Director, and Chair of the Research Degrees Board. She is an active doctoral supervisor for postgraduate research students across disciplines, including projects on music and dementia (Ruby Swift), shared decision making and rheumatoid arthritis (Frances Chilton), illness perceptions and mood disorders (Kim Caldwell), perinatal mental health (Jo Johnson), physical activity and bipolar disorder (Gemma McCullough), staff experiences following student suicide (Hilary Causer), sexuality and conversion therapy in the Caribbean (Jimmy Couzens), professional identity formation among student nurses (Theresa Pengally), and resilience among senior healthcare leaders (Adam Turner).

Bradley's research focuses on the application of health psychology to healthcare settings and patient experiences, particularly those living with long-term conditions including adult mental ill-health. Her specialist areas include mental health nurse and pharmacist prescribing decisions involving service users and family carers, patient confidentiality in adult mental healthcare among nursing students, and psychological consequences of anaphylaxis in adults. An expert in qualitative research methodologies such as grounded theory and meta-synthesis, she co-chairs a qualitative research special interest forum with Dr Theresa Mitchell. She has secured funding for inter-disciplinary projects, including an evaluation of a talent management initiative by the NHS Leadership Academy (completed 2019), and serves as Principal Investigator for the five-year NIHR-funded THRIVE programme tackling rural mental health inequalities in Herefordshire and Worcestershire. She co-established the award-winning STARS programme in 2020 with Keele University and Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust to advance research skills for health and social care professionals. Key publications include 'The experiences of the caring dyad: (Un)articulated realities of living with cardiometabolic risk, metabolic syndrome and related diseases in severe mental illness' (Sud et al., 2021, Health Expectations); 'Bearing witness: A grounded theory of the experiences of staff following a student death by suicide' (Causer et al., 2021, PLoS ONE); 'The role of pharmacy in the management of cardiometabolic risk, metabolic syndrome and related diseases in severe mental illness: A mixed methods systematic literature review' (Sud et al., 2021, BMC Systematic Reviews); 'The Hidden Psychological Challenges of Living with Anaphylaxis in Adults' (Mahoney et al., 2019, The Psychologist); and 'Application of Health Psychology: Development of a practitioner training intervention in anaphylaxis' (Walklet et al., 2019, Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions). Bradley collaborates with NHS partners, acts as a peer reviewer for journals, and has served as an external examiner for doctoral students and a sub-panel member for National Institute for Health Research programmes.