Dr Laura Ward

I am a health data scientist passionate about the re(use) of NHS and administrative data to conduct research that will improve health care and patient outcomes. I joined the Health Informatics Centre (HIC) at the University of Dundee in 2023 as Project Manager of the Trusted Research Environment (TRE). My role at HIC has evolved and I am currently a Research Fellow (Health Informatics) involved in both the service delivery of the TRE and data science research projects. The TRE, also known as a Safe Haven, provides a flexible and scalable environment that enables researchers to conduct innovative and impactful research in a secure cloud-based platform.

I am also an Honorary Research Associate at the University of Glasgow’s School of Health and Wellbeing, Scottish Learning Disabilities Observatory (SLDO). This is a continuation of my postdoctoral research where I am involved in various collaborations, such as cancer, pain and prescribing inequalities. My SLDO research focused on identifying and reducing the health inequalities faced by people with learning disabilities and/or autism. I led on projects about polypharmacy, multimorbidity, cancer, oral health, and mortality. Prior to this I completed my PhD at Glasgow Caledonian University researching the impact of healthy ageing on the visual brain (using neuroimaging, psychophysics, and psychology). My MSc in Research Methods in Psychological Sciences was at the University of Glasgow and my undergraduate BSc in Biological Sciences (Psychology) at the University of Edinburgh.