Dr Sian De Bell

I am a Research Fellow in the Exeter HSDR Evidence Synthesis Centre, where I conduct syntheses of evidence about the organisation and delivery of health and social care in the UK. Recent projects have included an evidence and gap map on remote monitoring for long-term health conditions, a qualitative evidence synthesis of data-sharing between health and social care, and a scoping review of extra-care housing for older people in the UK. More information about these can be found on the centre's webpage. 

I also conduct primary research, focusing on:

• air quality citizen science, through the EXPO-ENGAGE project, which has explored the use of personal monitors to measure air quality in the community, and how to reduce barriers to their use in underserved communities.
• the links between natural environments and human health and well-being.

I work at the interface between academia, policy and practice with a focus on knowledge translation. I am interested in decision-making at a systems level and the use of evidence in decision-making. My research has considered how best to achieve this, in the context of the benefits of the natural environment for human health and wellbeing, and within the health services and public health more widely. Given the climate crisis, I am currently developing research on the decarbonisation of the health and social care system, and believe this is an important area for futher study. 

Career:

Sian joined the Univeristy of Exeter in 2018, working in the European Centre for Environment and Human Health (ECEHH), initially on Greenkeeper, an Innovate UK project with Vivid Economics and Barton Willmore, which developed a toolkit to value the benefits of urban green spaces. She was then an Impact Fellow on the Informing environmental investment for health and wellbeing project, funded by the South West Partnership for Environment and Economic Prosperity (SWEEP).

Previously, Sian studied BSc Biology at the University of Bristol before moving to the University of York for her PhD. This was part of the ESRC Health of Populations and Ecosystems (HOPE) project and investigated the benefits of freshwater blue space for health and well-being. She analysed UK-wide data on the benefits of blue spaces, as well as using qualitative methods to investigate the dual benefits of an urban river restoration project for the environment and human well-being. After finishing her PhD, she worked on a qualitative systematic review of environmental influences on older people’s travel behaviour.