Kitty Suddick

I am a principal lecturer in physiotherapy in the School of Education, Sport and Health Sciences. My research interests span the neurological and rehabilitation fields. I hold a specific interest in caring practice in physiotherapy and rehabilitation, stroke, stroke rehabilitation, qualitative and creative methods, and in particular, hermeneutic phenomenology. 

I am interested in supervising qualitative research in a range of topics. I have a particular interest in phenomenology, hermeneutics, creative methods, and patient experience in long term neurological conditions. I am also currently involved in developing a programme of research into the NEUROfit programme.  

I supervise research in the rehabilitation field, caring practices, acute stroke care, and other timepoints along the care and rehabilitation pathway. I am interested in the healthcare provider and user experience, how they can contribute to meaningful understanding, and how research findings can translate and inform practice. 

I supervise undergraduate and MSc students. I have been a member of a supervisory team for a doctoral study completion exploring wellbeing in cancer survivorship. I am currently a supervisor team member for a study into co-production of care, and PhD team in Finland exploring the lived experience of chronic headache and migraine. 

I qualified from the University of Brighton in 1995 and obtained my MSc in Neurorehabilitation at Brunel University in 2002. I completed my doctoral study entitled: The acute stroke unit as transitional space: the lived experience of stroke survivors and healthcare practitioners in 2018. I have subsequently presented this work at the International Health Sciences Research Conference in South Carolina, June 2018, and Bournemouth University’s Humanising special interest group.   

I am a member of a team of academic and clinical staff exploring the wellbeing of people with Motor Neurone Disease, and I am currently developing a research programme that investigates the NEUROfit approach.  

I have published in the International Journal of Qualitative Methods, Health & Place, Disability & Rehabilitation, the Journal of Interprofessional Care, Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences, Physiotherapy Research International, Journal of Nursing and Healthcare of Chronic Illness, and International Journal of Therapy and Rehabilitation, and I peer review for a range of journals. I am a member of the Editorial Review board of the International Journal of Qualitative Methods.