Mark Adley

Host university Newcastle University

PhD research project Exploring the care pathways of LGBT+ people who experience severe and multiple disadvantage in North East England: a mixed method study

Project summary: While LGBT+ people have been found to experience poorer health outcomes than heterosexuals, they are often less visible in frontline services. This project therefore aims to take a ‘snapshot’ of the current system of health and social care support in the North East for LGBT+ people who have experienced multiple disadvantage (e.g. experience of homelessness, substance use disorder, or domestic violence).

Interviews will be held with professionals and LGBT+ people, with those experiencing multiple disadvantage offered ongoing interviews over 12-18 months to find out more about their experiences navigating support systems. Community engagement is central to this study: a steering group has been set up, and informal discussions held both within the group and with members of the public, which have helped to sculpt the study design. It is hoped that findings from the research project will identify ways to improve future care pathways for this population.

My background and research interests: I have over 30 years’ frontline experience within the fields of substance use, homelessness, HIV/AIDS, and social prescribing in community, residential, and custodial settings. I designed the Drugs Wheel model of substance awareness that has now been adapted for 13 countries, and translated into 12 languages including Arabic, Russian, and Swedish.

Expected PhD completion date: March 2025

Contact: [email protected]