Research Community

Dr Nicola Gillin is a Research Fellow at the Veterans and Families Institute for Military Social Research, Anglia Ruskin University, UK. She is the lead author of two, FiMT-funded, research studies: “Understanding and improving non-UK service and transition in the British Armed Forces” and “Understanding and mapping the psychosocial wellbeing support needs of veteran family members across the UK: a multi-methods study” Alongside her research with military populations, Nicola has continued to build her research expertise in public-sector migration through research, consulting and doctoral student supervision.  She has recently acquired funding to explore retirement intentions amongst UK-situated Filipino nurses.   

Dr Patricia Irizar is a Post-doctoral Research Associate with experience in applying epidemiological and qualitative methods to study co-occurring Alcohol use disorder (AUD) and Common Mental Disorders (CMD) in police officers and military personnel. 

Dr Paul Ansdell is a Physiologist whose research focuses on how age, sex, and hormonal status interact to determine physiological function in health and disease. His work to date aims to detail the interaction between systems and quantify acute responses and chronic adaptation to interventions, such as exercise. Specifically, he is interested in how hormones affect brain health and function across the male and female lifespan.

Dr Paul Watson is an Assistant Director of the Northern Hub for Veterans and Military Families Research (Military connected Children and Young People) and Assistant Professor in Nursing (Children and Young People) & Specialist Community Public Health Nursing. Paul is an expert in narrative methodologies and has a growing portfolio of research on the emotional health and well-being of military connected children and young people and young carers, PTSD and social isolation and loneliness in the Veteran population, and military connected suicide.

Dr Rachael Gribble is a Lecturer in War & Psychiatry, King's College London. Using mixed methods approaches, her research focuses on how occupation impacts and influences the well-being of military families. She has conducted research on the health and well-being of military families, including mental health among military spouses/partners, experiences of weekending, intimate partner violence within the military community, Veteran family health and well-being, Veteran transition, Veteran mental health, and public attitudes to the military. 

Dr Becky Randles is a Lecturer in Psychology at Arden University. Previously she held the post of Senior Researcher at the Westminster Centre for Research in Veterans. She previously led research projects including “Where Are All the Veterans” and “Supporting Armed Forces in Acute Hospital Settings” and has extensive experience in quantitative and qualitative research methodologies. Her prior research career has followed themes such as domestic homicide, touch perception and research ethics and governance. She has produced numerous publications within Veterans' research, with themes surrounding mental health, help-seeking, and well-being and has contributed to the writing of grants and ethical applications.