Professor Heather Wilkinson
Director of E-CRED

Contact details
- Tel: +44 (0)131 651 3925
- Email: H.Wilkinson@ed.ac.uk
Address
- Street
-
Room 1m.04a, Doorway 6, Medical Quad, Teviot Place
- City
- Edinburgh
- Post code
- EH8 9AG
Background
My key areas of work focus on improving the care of older people. This aim has underpinned my research career since 1996 and my work focuses on developing better understandings of methodological and personal perspectives of people with dementia and for people with learning disabilities and dementia. My research has both demographic and policy imperatives at international levels i.e. population of people with dementia and people with learning disability are increasing as are their age related health and service needs. The work also intersects across the fields of gerontology, health, nursing, sociology, practice development and social policy with strong knowledge exchange and practice development components.<strong> </strong>Much of my work has been methodologically innovative to ensure that the research participants with dementia and/or learning disability (previously totally excluded) are included in research and dissemination. Several of the projects have had a direct influence on policy and practice (the work for the Scottish Government on the Adults with Incapacity legislation and the night time care project in particular). More recently I have linked my work into a stronger awareness of knowledge exchange and public engagement including at an international level with my partnerships in India and Taiwan. Ensuring strong impact and effective knowledge exchange is a key element of my approach leading to much of my work being translated into policy and legislation, and made accessible to practitioner audiences. My work has contributed to service development in Scotland and I was co-founder of the Scottish Dementia Working Group, which celebrated its 10th birthday this year with a reception at the Scottish National Gallery hosted by the Scottish Government. My work also relates strongly to the increased focus on knowledge exchange and impact. I was PI on one of the five ESRC projects within the ESRC/SFC/LARCHI programme on knowledge exchange and Local Authorities and this project has led to 2 ESRC Follow on Fund awards. The successes in these areas of work have allowed me to develop case studies around impact grounded in theories of knowledge exchange. All my work has been brought together in the development and launch in 2012 of the MSc in Dementia: International Experiences, Policy and Practice. <a href="http://www.ed.ac.uk/health-social-science/issh/dementia">www.ed.ac.uk/health-social-science/issh/dementia</a>, of which I am Programme Director.
Qualifications
- PhD, Lancaster University, 1997. (ESRC studentship 1994-1997)
- PCGE, Didsbury, Manchester, 1991
- BA (Hons) Geography, Northumbria University, 1984 - 1987
-
Describing transitions in residential status over 10 years in the very old: results from the Newcastle 85+ Study
In:
Age and Ageing, vol. 51
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afac056
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
‘Guid times wi the bad times’: The meanings and experiences of befriending for people living alone with dementia
(20 pages)
In:
Dementia: The International Journal of Social Research and Practice
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/14713012211024488
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (E-pub ahead of print) -
Relationships matter!: Utilising ethics of care to understand transitions in the lives of adults with severe intellectual disabilities
(12 pages)
In:
British Journal of Learning Disabilities
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/bld.12380
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (E-pub ahead of print) -
A public inconvenience: Better toilets for inclusive travel
In:
Disability and Society
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2020.1867508
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (E-pub ahead of print) -
Relational care and co-operative endeavour: Reshaping dementia care through participatory secondary data analysis
(22 pages)
In:
Dementia: The International Journal of Social Research and Practice, vol. 19, pp. 1151-1172
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1471301218795353
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
Tackling dementia globally: the Global Dementia Prevention Program (GloDePP) collaboration
In:
Journal of Global Health, vol. 9
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7189/jogh.09.020103
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Editorial (Published) -
Developing evaluation of signage for people with dementia
In:
Housing, Care and Support
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/HCS-12-2018-0035
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
Safe and inclusive research practices for qualitative research involving people with dementia: A review of key issues and strategies
In:
Dementia: The International Journal of Social Research and Practice, vol. 18, pp. 1042-1059
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1471301217701274
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
How practitioner-led research could have greater impact: The importance of considering knowledge mobilisation holistically
In:
Evidence and Policy, vol. 14, pp. 641-663
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1332/174426417X14987303892424
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
A seat around the table: Participatory data analysis with people living with dementia
In:
Qualitative Health Research, vol. 28, pp. 1421-1433
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732318774768
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published)