About
Professor Michael Kelly serves as Senior Visiting Fellow in the Department of Public Health and Primary Care at the University of Cambridge. He previously directed the Centre for Public Health at NICE from 2005-2014 before retiring from the NHS. He maintains additional honorary professorships at the University of Manchester (Population Health, Health Services Research and Primary Care within the School of Dentistry) and Glasgow Caledonian University.
His academic background includes Social Sciences (Sociology specialization) from the University of York, a Sociology master's from the University of Leicester, and a PhD in Psychiatry from the University of Dundee. Prior academic appointments spanned Universities of Leicester, Abertay, Glasgow, and Greenwich, where he served as Head of the School of Social Sciences.
Professor Kelly's research portfolio demonstrates exceptional breadth across public health disciplines:
- Health inequalities (current research focus at Cambridge)
- Evidence-based medicine methodology and philosophy
- Cardiovascular disease prevention
- Behavioral determinants of health
- Social determinants of non-communicable diseases
- Dental public health policy
- Transportation-health interrelationships
- Community-based health interventions
His policy influence extends through testimony before the House of Commons Health Select Committee, leadership of WHO's methodology work stream for the Commission on Social Determinants of Health (2005-2007), and committee chairmanships for MRC, ESRC, Food Standards Agency, PHE, and OHID.
Professional recognition includes:
- Alwyn Smith Prize (Faculty of Public Health, 2010)
- University of York Honorary Doctorate (2014)
- Glasgow Caledonian University Lifetime Achievement Award (2017)
- Triple fellowship across major medical colleges
Kelly's career exemplifies the integration of sociological perspectives with medical science to address systemic health challenges, particularly through his leadership in developing evidence-based public health guidelines at NICE and ongoing research on health equity at Cambridge.
