Current research

Professor of Participatory Health Services Research and Research Group Leader at the Department of Public Health, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, UCPH.

Hold a Research Collaborator appointment at the Mayo Clinic, Minnesota, and an Honorary Fellowship at College of Medicine & Veterinary Medicine, the University of Edinburgh.

Co-president, Society of Fellows, UCPH Forward, UCPH.

Particularly invested in and passionate about research leadership and strategic initiatives to enhance foundations for collaborative, curiosity-driven and impact-oriented interdisciplinary research in broad partnerships; supporting sustainable careers for younger researchers; and advancing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in academia.

Background in Public Health Sciences, and a PhD in multi-methods Health Services Research from UCPH. From 2013-19, Honorary Research Fellow at the Usher Institute of Population Health Sciences and Informatics, University of Edinburgh. Key in the initiation of the academic public health program in Qatar, 2013-15. Deputy Head of Department at the Department of Public Health, UCPH, 2021-23, and Deputy Director of Center for Healthy Aging, UCPH, 2021-24.

Completed several leadership tracks, including the Women Leaders Programme, INSEAD; the UCPH Forward: Talent Programme for Excellence in Research; and Advancing Diversity and Inclusion, INSEAD. Completed course in Board training, Altinget & Rud Pedersen Public Affairs.

Head of a research group that conducts interdisciplinary, collaborative and mixed methods research with the mission to enhance person-centered healthcare in the context of aging, equity and diversity in broad national and international partnerships. Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement is central in our approach, both as a methodology and as a field of inquiry. Furthermore, we explore models for strategic partnerships tackling complex societal challenges and enabling research-based innovation with impact. Collaborates with a range of national and international stakeholders e.g. citizen and patient representatives, patient organizations, civic society partners, public partners in the health and social care fields, private partners and knowledge institutions.

Have directed/direct research projects with national and international partners. Author and co-author of 130+ peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. Contribute with a range of other science communication activities including reports, debate articles, blogs, talks at science and public festivals, viewpoints, interviews in radio and television, and conference contributions such as keynotes, panels, oral and poster presentations.  

Board member, public speaker and consultant. The vice chair of the Board of Directors at the EGV Foundation, on the Board of Directors of the Danish Institute in Damascus, and a member of the Steering Committee of the University Hospitals' Center for Health Research.

Involved in assessment of grant applications and academic work nationally and internationally, e.g. for Horizon Europe, the European Research Council, the Innovative Health Initiative, the European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) Programme, Pathfinder Open, the Research Council of Norway, Forte (the Swedish Research Council), The Fund for Scientific Research – FNRS, Trygfonden, the Research Committee of the Danish Heart Foundation, the Grant Committee and the Training Committee of the Danish Cardiovascular Academy, the Scientific Committee of the Danish Cancer Society, the Dutch Research Council, and the Baltic Research Programme.

CV

Current position:

2022-: Professor of Participatory Health Services Research, Department of Public Health, Section for Health Services Research, UCPH.

Previous positions:

2023-24: Head of Center, UCPH Collaborative Aging Research Initiative, UCPH.

2021-23: Deputy Head of Department, Department of Public Health, UCPH.

2021-24: Deputy Director, Center for Healthy Aging, UCPH.

2015-22: Associate Professor, Department of Public Health, UCPH.

2013-15: Associate Professor, Head of Health Promotion Track, Qatar University.

2012-13: Assistant Professor, Department of Public Health, UCPH.

2011-12: Postdoc Fellow, Department of Public Health, UCPH.

2007-11: PhD student, Department of Public Health, UCPH.

Education and selected continued education:

2024:  Advancing Diversity and Inclusion Programme, INSEAD.

2022:  Women Leaders Programme, INSEAD.

2019: UCPH Forward: Talent Programme for Excellence in Research, UCPH.

2011:  Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), UCPH.

2005:  Master of Science in Public Health, UCPH.

Fields of interest

Participatory science; strategic partnerships; interdisciplinarity; innovation; aging; PPIE (Public and Patient Involvement and Engagement); person-centered care; diversity; inequality; public health; health services research; co-creation; outreach; impact; mixed-methods studies; intervention studies; implementation.

Teaching

Participatory research; patient and public involvement and engagement; aging and frailty; person-centered care; diversity; inequity; project management; mixed methods approaches; health services research.

Teach, supervise and assess Bachelor, Master and PhD students, run internships, and mentor younger researchers. Member of the External Examiner Corps for Public Health and Related Programs, and the Danish External Examiners’ Corps for the Medical Degree Programme, Denmark.

Primary fields of research

Participatory research; interdisciplinary research; aging research; inequity; health services research; public health.