Professor Julia Critchley
Visiting Professor

Introduction

Dr Julia Critchley is a Senior Lecturer in Epidemiology in the ARCHES (Advancing Research in Chronic Disease Epidemiology) Research group. She has worked in local public health services (UK) and academic Public Health, developing interest and experience in 1) evidence based health care and health policies, 2) research synthesis, particularly of observational data 3) epidemiological approaches to evaluating disease burdens and explaining disease trends.

Background

Following my first degree in Human Sciences (Oxford) and PhD in HIV Epidemiology and modelling, I worked in local services public health in London (1996-2000), including co-ordinating an RCT of physical activity promotion in primary care. I then moved to Liverpool and returned to academic public health, working as a research associate in epidemiology and health services research to develop a CHD mortality model (2000-2002). I worked as a Lecturer at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (2003-2006), where I was mainly responsible to training international students in evidence based medicine and carrying out systematic reviews. From 2006 I moved to Newcastle as a Senior Lecturer in Epidemiology, to help develop the ARCHES research programme (prevention and treatment of non-communicable diseases in low and middle income settings).

Roles and Responsibilities

Organising the seminar series for the Institute of Health and Society

Qualifications

2000 Diploma in ‘Systematic Reviews Methodology’ (distinction awarded) at the Systematic Review Training Unit, Institute of Child Health, University College London.

1998 M.Sc. with distinction in Public Health at St. George’s Hospital Medical School, University of London.

1992-95 D.Phil. in HIV epidemiology and transmission at Somerville College, Oxford.

1989-92 BA (Hons., 1st class) in Human Sciences, at St. John’s College, Oxford.

Previous Positions

January 2003 - March 2006 Lecturer in Epidemiology and Research Synthesis, International Health Research Group, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine

January 2000 to December 2002, Research Fellow in Health Services Research / Cardiovascular Epidemiology. Department of Public Health, University of Liverpool

July 1998 to January 2000 Research Officer / Project Manager for a RCT of physical activity promotion in Barnet Health Authority, North London.

January 1996 to July 1998, Epidemiologist / public health officer for Bexley and Greenwich Health Authority, South-East London.

Memberships

Member of Society for Social Medicine since 2000.

Research Interests

Prevention and treatment of chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs), particularly cardiovascular disease, in economically and socially disadvantaged populations.

Development and use of epidemiological models to explore and explain trends in chronic disease mortality.

Systematic review methodologies, particularly of observational data

Current Work

Assessing the health and economic impact of active and passive smoking in China, using a nationally representative household survey.

Developing a stroke mortality and incidence model, from an initial successful pilot in Beijing.

Future Research

Pilot project to explore the relationship between Tuberculosis and diabetes in low income settings (including estimating the magnitude of the association from case-control studies, and using modelling approaches to estimate the potential public health impact of any interaction

Modelling the impact of trends in major CHD risk factors on CHD mortality in Tanzania

Developing methodologies for assessing the quality of observational studies, based on empirical evidence of the effects of different aspects of quality on study outcome

Contributing to capacity development initiatives in low and middle income countries

Esteem Indicators

Invited speaker at EU Conference “Women’s Health at Heart”, Brussels, (March 2006)

Invited speaker at EUROPREVENT Conference, Madrid, April 2007

Editorial board member for BMC Public Health and BMC Infectious Diseases (2005 onwards)

Faculty member of 'Health services research and economics' section of Public Health and Epidemiology Faculty for 1000 Medicine project (2005 onwards).

Member of Consortium Safety Panel for IPTi (intermittent preventive treatment for infants) trial network (2004 onwards)

Member of Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine Research Ethics Committee (August 2003 – March 2006).

Funding

Current managing an IDRC grant of £40,000 to assess the health and economic impact of active and passive smoking in China

Undergraduate Teaching

I will be contributing to the 'Medicine in the Community' module.

Postgraduate Teaching

I will be contributing to the applied epidemiology module for the MSc in Health Sciences.

Previously, I was the module co-ordinator for the Epidemiology and Statistics module of the Masters in Community Health, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine.