Shane Doheny

Dr. Shane Doheny is a Research Associate at Cardiff Business School, Cardiff University, where they are affiliated with the Centre for Innovation Policy Research. With a long-standing research career spanning multiple disciplines, Doheny has established expertise in medical sociology, health policy, and critical theory, with particular focus on genetics, ageing, and citizenship studies.

Doheny's research interests center on the complex interplay between knowledge, ethics, and decision-making in healthcare contexts. Their work explores how patients navigate genetic and prenatal testing decisions, particularly when test outcomes serve more personal than clinical utility. Through innovative methodologies including clinical ethnographies and personal diaries, Doheny examines the nuanced experiences of individuals within predictive genetics clinics and fetal medicine settings. Their scholarship critically engages with medical sociology, examining the social dimensions of genetic knowledge, family dynamics in testing contexts, and the ethical responsibilities within healthcare systems.

The trajectory of Doheny's publications reveals consistent engagement with critical questions at the intersection of medical practice, ethics, and social theory. Their work spans from foundational studies in critical gerontology and rural ageing to more recent investigations of genomic medicine implementation, patient experiences in genetic testing, and NHS decision-making processes. A recurring theme across their scholarship is the examination of power dynamics, ethical responsibilities, and knowledge production within healthcare systems.

• Technologies of Prognostication and the Communication of Uncertainty in the Newborn Intensive Care Unit (Welsh Government, £10,634)
• The UK/Japan Genetics and Genomics Research Network (ESRC/EPSRC, £38,183)
• Framing the trajectories of decision-making in predictive and prenatal genetic testing (ESRC)

Doheny has received significant research funding as principal investigator, co-investigator, and named researcher on multiple projects examining healthcare systems, genetics, and social policy. Their current work focuses on the Cardiff Capital Region's 'Challenge Fund' and the barriers and facilitators to mainstreaming genomics in the NHS, reflecting their ongoing commitment to understanding how innovative solutions develop in response to societal challenges while maintaining critical theoretical engagement with empirical findings.