SIR PAUL GRICE | PRINCIPAL & VICE-CHANCELLOR, QUEEN MARGARET UNIVERSITY

QMU’s Principal and Vice-Chancellor. Formerly Clerk and Chief Executive of the Scottish Parliament, Sir Paul Grice has an outstanding national governance and leadership record, including high-level experience in academic research policy and university finance.

He was knighted in the New Year Honours List 2016 for services to the Scottish Parliament and voluntary services to higher education and the community in Scotland. He is also an honorary professor at the University of Stirling (Faculty of Social Sciences).

PROFESSOR DAWN SKELTON | PROFESSOR OF AGEING & HEALTH | GLASGOW CALEDONIAN UNIVERSITY 

Dawn Skelton is Professor of Ageing and Health in the Department of Physiotherapy and Paramedicine. She is a member of the Falls and Frailty programme within the Ageing Well Research Group. She is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and an Honorary Fellow of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy.
As an Exercise Physiologist, she has a keen interest in exercise rehabilitation within a falls prevention scope, from the hospital-based physiotherapy delivery to the community-based specialist exercise instructor provision. Her current research ranges from motivation and patient preference to engaging the very frail, increasing adherence to long-term exercise and working with the pre-frail to prevent poor outcomes later. She is a lead and co-author on multiple Cochrane Systematic Reviews.

She chaired the Royal Osteoporosis Society’s Statement on Exercise and Osteoporosis (2018) and the Older People Panel for the UK’s update of the Physical Activity for Health Guidelines (2019). She is currently Chair of the British Geriatrics Society Rehabilitation Group and is part of the Community Rehabilitation Alliance and the National Falls Prevention Co-ordination Group within Public Health England. She is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board for the Older People and Frailty Policy Research Unit (OPFPRU) funded by the NIHR.

She recently received the British Geriatrics Society Marjory Warren Lifetime Achievement Award for her work in translating falls prevention research into practice. She has also been honoured with an honorary medical doctorate (MD) from Umea University for her work in functional exercise with older people. She is also Director of the not-for-profit training company Later Life Training.

DR LINDESAY IRVINE | PROGRAMME DIRECTOR FOR PROFESSIONAL DOCTORATE PROGRAMME | QUEEN MARGARET UNIVERSITY

Collaborate with international education institutions to develop and accredit nursing programmes at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Also work with teams to develop continuous professional development modules for nurses. Working as a clinical link with Randolphhill Care Group.
Doctoral research into Older people and experiences of care.

Skilled at facilitation of learning and involved in the development and delivery of education to educators nationally and internationally. Particular focus is on transformative learning through experiential, person centred approaches.

DR ALISON BLACK | CONSULTANT RHEUMATOLOGIST | NHS GRAMPIAN OSTEOPOROSIS AND RHEUMATOLOGY SERVICE

Dr Alison J. Black has been involved in metabolic bone disease work since 1993. She has an MD on the effects of parathyroid hormone on bone and is a clinical lead in the Osteoporosis service for NHS Grampian.

KATHRYN BERG | TRIALS MANAGER | UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH

Kathryn Berg is a Clinical Trial Manager at the University of Edinburgh who has worked in rheumatology research for six years. She graduated with a BSc in Geography in 2016 before completing a Master’s degree in Genomics and Experimental Medicine in 2022. Kathryn has co-authored several peer reviewed papers and has presented her work at international conferences.  Her research interests lie mainly in rare diseases, women’s health and the inequity of health services provision, and her passion for improving patients' lives through clinical research and policy engagement motivates her daily work.

DR ALEXANDRA MAVROEIDI | READER & HEAD OF DEPARTMENT | GLASGOW CALEDONIAN UNIVERSITY

Dr Mavroeidi is a Reader and head of department at Glasgow Caledonian University. She is a state registered dietitian with 17 years of academic experience, specialising in the field of nutrition, exercise and bone health. She has been involved in a number of studies looking at the relative contributions of sunlight, diet and physical activity on vitamin D status in women living in the north of the UK. She joined the Ageing Well Research Group at Glasgow Caledonian University in 2016,  and her current research focuses on lifestyle interventions (reduction of sedentary behaviour and optimisation of diet) to prevent falls in older adults and improve quality of life. 

PROFESSOR ALASDAR MACLULLICH | CHAIR OF THE SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT HIP FRACTURE AUDIT

Alasdair MacLullich is a physician and Professor of Geriatric Medicine at Edinburgh University who chairs the Scottish Government Hip Fracture Audit. He co-founded the European Delirium Association in 2006, and he co-chaired the committee producing the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines (SIGN) guideline ‘Risk reduction and management of delirium’, published in 2019.

He is active clinically, working in acute orthogeriatrics and acute geriatrics. His research interests include the clinical assessment and care of delirium, hip fracture care, and the use of large-scale routine data to understand delirium and hip fracture outcomes. He is the main author of the 4AT delirium detection tool used widely in routine care internationally including as part of several hip fracture registries.

KAREN WHITEHEAD | MBE

Karen’s background is as a research librarian & of paid and voluntary work for various scientific and healthcare organisations including RCOG. 

Most recently, over recent years, Karen has been a voluntary member of the RCS Public & Patient Group, a voluntary Research Partner & Involvement Network volunteer with VA and a voluntary patient member of RCP FFFAP Patient & Carer Panel & the RCP FFFAP FLSDB and HFDB and NAIF and other advisory groups.

Diagnosed with PAO & 24 fractures (including 14 vertebrae & a hip fracture), she has presented widely over many years to hospitals (including maternity & midwifery departments) & at healthcare professional events about the disease. 

Karen has also written a book, “Breakable but Unbroken” about her life, living with Osteoporosis, with a section “Other Voices” telling the stories of other Mothers with PAO. 

Karen is currently a Patient Expert with NICE PIP and a member of the NICE England Osteoporosis Guideline Update Committee, after previously serving as a member of the NICE HST (Rare Disease) Committee for three years and also in 2022 as a member of the NICE Delirium & Osteoporotic Hip Fracture Guideline Update Committees.   

After serving a three year term as a voluntary patient advocate with the ROS Osteoporosis & Bone Research Academy, Karen as their “patient researcher” has since been working alongside the University of Edinburgh research team, on their groundbreaking patient-centric research into PAO https://www.ed.ac.uk/centre-genomic-medicine/research-groups/ralston-group/pao-study & co-presenting preliminary research results at various healthcare events including to the Maternity & Midwifery Forum (MMF) Conferences and Exhibitions around the UK, most recently in September 2023 to the Welsh & SW England MMF.

OCTOBER 20th 2023 

Location and Getting Here

We are delighted to be hosting the Lydia Plus Symposium at Queen Margaret University Campus. The campus is easily accessible whether you are travelling to us by bike, foot, public transport, or car.

QMU campus is located close to Musselburgh, east of Edinburgh city centre. The best way to access the campus is through public transport or walking/cycling. We have Musselburgh train station at our front door and bus services stopping on campus. National cycle Route 1 provides direct access via active travel. Vehicular access can only be gained from the A1.

Sustainability is a key element of the campus' design and we further encourage it with a Green Travel Policy. Staff, students and visitors are encouraged to travel sustainably and car parking permits are awarded based on need. For example, those with caring responsibilities will be given priority.

If you need to travel by car, please ensure you add your registration number when booking your place at our symposium.  

We have included some details below to help you find us. 

Get to QMU by public transport 

Get to QMU by Bike or Foot

Get to QMU by car

If you have any questions, please contact events@qmu.ac.uk.