Research interests
I am a social scientist using theory-driven methods (in particular, Realist approaches) to conduct collaborative implementation research for intervention design and evaluation across health and social care, in particular palliative care.
Funded research projects:
2021-2022 Pearson, M., Johnson, M., Boland, J., Allgar, V., Siddiqi, N. ‘Improving the detection, assessment, management, and prevention of delirium in Specialist Palliative Care Units’ Yorkshire Cancer Research TRANSFORM endowment fund £98,649 (Co-Chief investigator)
2021-2022 Maben, J., Mannion, R., Jones, A., Westbrook, J., Pearson, M., Wright, J. & Abrams, R. ‘Identifying interventions to reduce healthcare staff unprofessional behaviours: a realist synthesis’ NIHR Health Services & Delivery Research (HSDR)13/16/06 £274,801 (Co-investigator)
2021 Johnson, M., Daniel, S., Salins,N., Clark, J., Pearson, M., Currow, D. ‘Improving Appropriate Access and Availability of Opioids for Cancer-related Pain Control in India : bridging the gap between policy and practice’ Research England Global Challenges Research Fund 2021 £25,370 (Co-investigator)
2020-2021 Crooks, M., Pearson, M., Cohen, J. ‘The Sentinel Project: Collaborating to improve asthma care’ AstraZeneca £55,147 (Co-investigator)
2019-2024 Johnson, M., Murtagh, F., Currow, D., Pearson, M. & Walker, E. ‘Building critical mass for palliative care research through collaborative support, exchange and challenge’ Research England International Investment Initiative (I3) £403,510 (Co-investigator)
2018-2022 Johnson, M., Fallon, M., Currow, D., Norrie, J., Hall, P., Seymour, J., Chaudhuri, N., Bajwah, S., Keen, J., Higginson, I., Buchanan, D., Hart, S., & Pearson, M. (2018) ‘A parallel-group, double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial comparing the effectiveness and cost-consequence and cost-effectiveness of low dose oral modified release morphine (MRM) versus placebo on the intensity of worst breathlessness in people with chronic breathlessness’ - NIHR Health Technology Appraisal (HTA) Award 17/34/01 (£1,380,693) (Co-investigator)
2017-2019 Mattick, K., Pearson, M., Wong, G., Carrieri, D., Papoutsi, C., Briscoe, S. & Jackson, M. (2017) ‘Care under pressure: a realist review of interventions to tackle doctors’ mental ill-health and its impacts on the clinical workforce and patient care’ - NIHR Health Services & Delivery Research (HSDR) Award 16/53/12 (£201,827) (Co-Chief Investigator)
2017-2018 Turner, A., Pearson, M., Baxter, S., Bunn, F., Hanratty, B., Sheaff, R. & Wilson, P. (2017) ‘New Models of Care - Enhanced dissemination of findings from five NIHR HSDR-funded reviews’ - NIHR Health Services & Delivery Research (HSDR) (£27,224) (Co-investigator)
2016-2017 Sheaff, R., Pearson, M., Lloyd, H., & Byng, R. (2016) ‘From programme theory to logic models for Multi-specialty Community Providers: A realist evidence synthesis’ - NIHR Health Services & Delivery Research (HSDR) Award 15/77/34 (£168,170) (Co-Chief Investigator)
2016-2021 Ismail, K., MacArthur, C., Bick, D. Johnston, T., Roberts, T., Oborn, E., Pearson, M., Tincello, D., Davenport, C., Daniels, J., Dean, S., Hay-Smith, J., Hemming, K., Kidd-Chadwick, J., Bridges, N., & Coleman, T. (2015) ‘Antenatal Prophylactic Pelvic Floor Exercises and Localisation (APPEAL) Programme’ - NIHR Programme Grants for Applied Research (£1,893,723 - Exeter components £305,487) (Co-investigator)
2015-2017 Boyd, K., Rappert, B., Farrimond, H., Pearson, M., Lang, I., Ralph, N., Poole, A. & Mellodew, K. (2015) ‘The Exeter Policing, Evidence and Research Translation (ExPERT) Project’ -College of Policing/ Higher Education Funding Council for England (£249,976) (Co-investigator)
2014-2016 Wong, G., Pearson, M., Mattick, K. & Brennan, N. (2014) ‘Interventions to improve antimicrobial prescribing in doctors in training: a realist review’ - NIHR Health Services & Delivery Research (HSDR) Award 13/97/24 (£187,540) (Co-investigator)
2011-2012 Pearson, M., Jones-Hughes, T., Peters, J. & Whear, R. (2011) Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) Systematic review - ‘Are interventions to reduce the impact of arsenic contamination of groundwater on human health and crop productivity in developing countries effective?’ Award 59617 (£37,236) (Chief Investigator)
2011-2012 Anderson, R., Pearson, M., Pawson, R., & Shepperd, S. (2011) NIHR Service Delivery & Organisation (SDO) ‘The effective and cost-effective use of intermediate, step-down, hospital at home and other forms of community care as an alternative to acute patient care: a realist review’ - Award 10/1012/07 (£101,079) (Co-investigator)
Postgraduate supervision
I welcome enquiries about Master’s or Doctoral research degrees in the following areas:
• Developing and evaluating palliative & chronic care interventions and implementation strategies, particularly in relation to symptom management, outcome measures and models of care
• Methodological development of theory-driven methods (in particular, realist research) for the evaluation of palliative & chronic care interventions
• The use of social science concepts (such as boundary objects) to inform implementation research and practice
Awarded postgraduate research students:
PhD (Exeter) Rebecca Hardwick: Third sector healthcare organisations and knowledge mobilisation: what works for whom in what circumstances and why? (2018)
PhD (Exeter) Thandiwe Hara-Msulira: Sustaining implementation: Understanding the sustainability of community-based public health programmes (2018)
PhD (Exeter) Harriet Hunt: Optimising cognitive assessment in primary care to support a more effective route to dementia diagnosis (2018)
Current postgraduate research students:
PhD, Jordan Curry: Acceptability, feasibility, and effectiveness of online supportive care interventions for lung cancer survivors (Funded by Yorkshire Cancer Research TRANSFORM programme (2018-2022))
PhD, Kate Binnie: Body-Mind approaches for living better with chronic breathlessness. (Funded by Research England International Investment Initiative (I3)) (2021-2024)
Master’s by Thesis, Alessandro Recchioni: How can digitisation improve the efficiency of palliative healthcare delivery and the quality of patient experience? (2021-2022)
Undergraduate research students (Academy of Medical Sciences’ INSPIRE programme):
Abid Khan: Implementation and acceptability of handheld/personal mobile technology to support palliative care: a systematic scoping review
Giovanna Licastro: What enables and constrains shared decision-making about opiates for people living with breathlessness?: A systematic narrative review and framework analysis of published data using a programme theory of shared decision-making
Lara Othman: The impact and acceptability of wearable sensors for symptom monitoring and management in palliative care: a structured literature review
Aliya Prihartadi: Non-medical devices for the self-management of chronic breathlessness: A scoping review of device use, barriers and facilitators for patients, carers and clinicians.