Profile
I joined the Centre for Psychiatry and Mental Health in the Wolfson Institute of Population Health as Senior Lecturer in Mental Health in 2026. I contribute to research and teaching on mental health, health psychology, and health inequalities.
I hold a BSc (Hons) in Psychology from the University of Bath, an MSc in Health Psychology from King’s College London, and a PhD in Psychobiology from University College London, supervised by Professor Andrew Steptoe. My early research examined biological and psychological recovery following cardiac surgery and the role of inflammation, stress and mood in physical health outcomes using clinical cohort and experimental methods.
In 2016, I was awarded an ESRC Future Leader’s Fellowship, which enabled me to investigate biosocial mechanisms linking depression with long‑term conditions including coronary heart disease, diabetes, cancer and arthritis. This work strengthened my expertise in mixed‑methods research, incorporating epidemiological analyses of population datasets and qualitative interviews with primary care patients to understand lived experience.
My research focuses on the intersection of mental and physical health, with a particular interest in diagnosis and management of mental illness in primary care settings. I have published widely on topics such as depression, multimorbidity and ethnic inequalities in mental health.
I am currently Principal Investigator for the NIHR‑funded PAPER Study (NIHR 155654), which examines inequalities in antidepressant prescribing among South Asian patients in UK primary care. The project integrates analysis of UK Biobank data, qualitative interviews with patients and community representatives, and analysis of GP decision‑making during depression assessments.
I supervise doctoral research which generates evidence to improve equitable mental health care and deepens understanding of how biological, psychological and social factors interact to shape mental and physical wellbeing.
Research
Research Interests:
My research focuses on understanding inequalities at the intersection of mental and physical health, with particular interest in how ethnicity and healthcare systems shape diagnostic pathways, treatment decisions and patient experiences. I am currently Principal Investigator of the NIHR‑funded PAPER Study, which examines inequalities in antidepressant prescribing among South Asian patients in UK primary care. This project integrates UK Biobank epidemiological analysis, qualitative interviews with patients and community representatives, and examination of GP decision‑making processes during depression assessments.
My broader research examines the mechanisms linking mental and physical health, including depression, anxiety, multimorbidity and cardiometabolic risk. Earlier in my career, I was awarded an ESRC Future Leader’s Fellowship, which enabled me to investigate biosocial pathways connecting depression with long‑term conditions such as coronary heart disease, diabetes, cancer and arthritis. Across my work, I draw on mixed‑methods approaches—epidemiology, psychophysiological stress measurement and qualitative interviewing—to understand both population‑level patterns and lived experience.
Overall, my goal is to generate evidence that improves equity in mental health care and deepens understanding of how biological, psychological and social factors interact to influence health outcomes.
Supervision
I welcome PhD applicants interested in the treatment and management of mental health conditions in primary care, particularly depression and its links with cardiometabolic disease and other long‑term conditions. My work examines how biological, psychological and social factors contribute to these conditions, using mixed‑methods approaches.