Suman Prinjha
Senior Research Fellow (Associate Professor)
Profile
Biography
Suman is an Associate Professor in Inclusive Health Research at York Trials Unit, a Research Inclusion Advisor in the NIHR Research Support Service delivered by University of York and partners, and a BACP-registered psychotherapist. She leads research into health inequalities, ethnic minority health, and using patient experience data to improve health information, care and services.
Suman leads the new Centre for Health Research Inclusion which works to advance knowledge and practice in conducting inclusive health and care research for public good. The Centre is dedicated to leading and championing research with underserved groups, delivering training in conducting inclusive research, fostering collaboration, and building capacity. Suman’s research over the last two decades has focused on the health experiences of people from a wide range of underserved groups including:
- South Asian communities, as part of the NIHR-funded Summit-D clinical trial on text messaging to support people with type 2 diabetes
- Bangladeshi, African and Caribbean communities, as Co-Investigator and EDI Workstream Lead on the NIHR-funded UPTURN clinical trial on COPD
- 11 studies published on the award-winning Healthtalk website which presents people's lived experiences of health issues in video and audio formats, based on qualitative research. This included conducting around 450 face-to-face, in-depth interviews across the UK, analysing the data, and writing lay summaries and academic papers on patients' experiences of:
- cancer and cancer screening (breast screening; breast cancer; DCIS; CIN3 and CGIN)
- intensive care (patients’ and relatives’ experiences; organ donation)
- long-term conditions (epilepsy; living with an indwelling urinary catheter)
- orthopaedic surgery (partial knee replacement; keyhole shoulder surgery)
- young people’s use and experiences of primary care
This research was conducted at the University of Oxford (2001-2021) which Suman joined shortly after completing a PhD in Social Anthropology at the London School of Economics.
Qualifications
- PhD Social Anthropology, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)
- MSc Social Anthropology, University of Edinburgh
- BSc Sociology and Social Psychology, University of Bradford
- Postgraduate Diploma Counselling and Psychotherapy, University of East London
Departmental roles
- Research Impact and Knowledge Exchange Lead, Department of Health Sciences
- Department of Health Sciences Research Committee
University roles
Advisory Board member, EDI Research Centre
Research
Overview
Suman’s work focuses on advancing health equity through her research with underserved groups, training courses in conducting inclusive research, and advisory roles with funding bodies, health charities and community organisations. She has shared her work with a wide range of audiences through short films available on YouTube, peer-reviewed papers and conferences, and the Healthtalk website which shares qualitative health research findings with the general public.
Projects
- UPTURN Study - Co-design and evaluation of an intervention to increase UPTake of pUlmonary RehabilitatioN for people living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Previous Projects
- THINK-HF – Feasibility trial of electronic health record intelligent tooling in primary care for quicker diagnosis of heart failure
- Learning from COVID-19: British South Asian perspectives on developing culturally appropriate health information resources
- Exploring British South Asian experiences of type 2 diabetes and support from mobile health text messaging
- Breast screening
- Ductal carcinoma in situ
- Women’s experiences of breast cancer
- Cervical abnormalities: CIN3 and CGIN
- Intensive care: patients’ experiences
- Intensive care: experiences of family and friends
- Organ donation: donor families, living donors and transplant recipients
- Adults’ experiences of epilepsy
- Living with a urinary catheter
- Patients’ experiences of partial knee replacement and keyhole shoulder surgery
- Seeing the GP: tips and advice for young people
- MOCHA (Models of Child Health Appraised)
Research group(s)
Supervision
Suman welcomes enquiries for Doctoral supervision in the following areas: health inequalities, ethnic minority health, mental health, and qualitative research.
Teaching
Other teaching
At the Centre for Health Research Inclusion we have pooled our wealth of expertise to develop a 4-hour CPD training course to share actionable learning about the inclusion of underserved groups in research. Our Improving diversity and inclusion in health and care research course aims to equip participants with the knowledge and skills to design and conduct inclusive research, and embed equity throughout their projects.
The course is delivered online by Dr Suman Prinjha, with the support of Community Researchers, senior researchers, and occasional guest speakers who are experts in their work with underserved groups.
External activities
Memberships
- Member of Wellcome Trust Accelerator Award Shortlisting Advisory Committee
- Registered member of British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy
- Member of Diabetes UK Research Steering Group
- Member of NHS England National Healthcare Inequalities Network
Invited talks and conferences
Selected invited talks
- 2026: From lab to patients: research inclusion for real-world impact. UK–Indonesia Research Translation Forum: Building Equitable UK–Indonesia Pathways for Health Sector Innovation and Drug Development
- 2024: Inclusive trials: ethics in action. University College Cork-CRF and the Health Research Board-Trials Methodology Research Network
- 2023: Cultural competence and inclusivity in research. Three NIHR Research Schools Mental Health Programme
- 2023: How to improve inclusivity in health research. NIHR Liver Partnerships launch, University of Nottingham
- 2021: Cancer Research UK Elusive Risks Project: Including ethnic minority views in health research. University of Cambridge
Media coverage
2022: Asian men seek ‘culturally sensitive’ accessible therapy
Media coverage on Suman’s Healthtalk studies:
Living with a urinary catheter study
- Spinal Column: I don’t want to injure myself again: If addicts can give up heroin, then I can give up horses. Journalist: Melanie Reid. The Times Magazine 08/06/13 p.13
- Spinal Column: My hip has settled down, my nails have stopped rotting, but my hands are depressingly clawed. Journalist: Melanie Reid. The Times Magazine 25/05/13 p. 11
