معرفی
Dr. Leah Fullegar is a KTP Associate at the University of Portsmouth within the Faculty of Business & Law, specifically in the School of Strategy, Marketing and Innovation. With practical experience as a care assistant in residential dementia care, she brings frontline perspective to her academic work focused on adult social care systems and workforce development.
Her educational background includes:
- Ph.D. in Care practices and incontinence-related stigma for formal care workers of individuals living with dementia in a residential care home setting from the University of Southampton (awarded August 16, 2024)
- BA (Hons) in Applied Health and Social Care from the University of Worcester (awarded July 20, 2018)
Dr. Fullegar's research centers on improving social care environments, with particular focus on continence care, stigma reduction, and workforce development in dementia care settings. Her work aims to bridge the gap between practical care experience and academic research, demonstrating that individuals from 'unqualified' social care backgrounds can become research active. She is passionate about improving working conditions for social care workers and increasing research capacity within the social care sector.
Her publication trajectory shows consistent focus on how care practices affect quality of life for individuals with dementia, particularly around sensitive issues like incontinence. Through methodologies including realist synthesis and validation studies, her work connects theoretical frameworks with practical care applications. Her research contributes to UN Sustainable Development Goals related to health, wellbeing, and quality care systems.
Dr. Fullegar actively contributes to research projects as both Research Leader and Team Member. Notable projects include 'Building capacity in social care through co-produced research and a learning partnership' (2023-2024), the 'Material Citizenship Framework' (2020-2022), and 'Creating Learning Environments for Compassionate Care' (2015-2020).
Her professional activities include 18 recorded engagements with 12 oral presentations, 2 publication peer-reviews, and 2 invited talks. She has been particularly active in 2024 with presentations on research skills in social care, including seminars on dissemination, presenting findings, and synthesizing evidence. She also serves as a Grant Peer-Reviewer for HSDR and presents regularly to research collaborations like NIHR Applied Research Collaborations Wessex.
