Department

Primary Care and Policy Studies

Biography

Joy Merrell’s clinical expertise is in public health nursing. Her research focuses on the participation of volunteers and the public in primary health care, public health nursing, needs assessment and accessibility of services for minority ethnic groups, and evaluating health promotion initiatives particularly for older people. She jointly leads the Midwifery and Families Professorial Unit in the School. She Chairs the West Wales Region of the Wales Equality and Diversity in Health and Social Care Research and Support Service, is a core member of the Older People and Ageing Research and Development Network, and an associate member of the Interdisciplinary Research Centre on Ageing. Her methodological expertise is in qualitative research, particularly ethnography. In addition to PhD supervision she teaches research methods at undergraduate and postgraduate level. She has a track record of funded research, presented at numerous national and international conferences and reviews for the highest impact nursing journals.

External activity

• President of Upsilon Xi at Large Chapter, Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI) Honor Society of Nursing
• Member of STTI International Taskforce on Chapter Leadership and Mentoring
• Member of the Wales Office for Research and Development Social Care Committee Research Funding Scheme
• Member of the Management and Operational Committees for the Research Capacity Building Collaboration Cymru (Funded by WORD and the Health Foundation)
• Chair of the Organising Committee for the RCN International Nursing Research Conference Cardiff 2009
• Member of the Scientific Committee for the RCN International Nursing Research Conference Liverpool 2008 and Cardiff 2009
• Member of the Steering Committee of the International Conferences on Community Health Nursing Research (ICCHNR)
• Member of RCN Cymru Diversity Forum
• Professorial representative on Cyngor Cymru for Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Profession Education
• University representative on the Council of Deans of Health

Research Grants

2007/2010 Action Research to Reduce Repetition of Stroke, Wales Office of R&D for Health & Social Care (WORD) £48 848.

2006-2008 Older People and Ageing R&D Network (OPAN, Cymru). Funded by WORD £396,000.

2006-2008 Wales Equality and Diversity in Health and Social Care Support and Research Service (WEDHS). Funded by WORD £245,000.

2006-2007 National Evaluation of Age Concern Ageing Well programme. Age Concern England and National Public Health Service Wales £48,233.

2005 Scoping Study to Develop a Research and Development Network on Older People and Ageing in Wales. Funded by WORD £19 873.

2005 Nursing and Midwifery Research Capacity and Capability Scoping Study. Funded by WORD £19,983

2005 Scoping study to explore the feasibility of a health and social care research and development network covering Black and minority ethnic groups in Wales. Funded by WORD £19,528

2004-2005 An Evaluation of the Volunteers’ Role in the Bridging the Gap Project funded by Age Concern Swansea £7, 400.

2003-2004 A Review of Primary Care and Community Nursing in Wales. Funded by the Welsh Assembly Government £171,406.

2002-2003 A Study to Identify the Social and Health Care Needs of Bangladeshi Women in Swansea: Public and Professional Perspectives. WORD Social Care Small Grant £9,853.

Dec 2001-April 2002 A Review of the Literature relating to the Health Information Needs of Minority Ethnic Groups. Funded by the Public Health Strategy Division of the National Assembly for Wales £4,610.

2001-2002 A Study to Identify the Health and Social Care Needs of Informal Carers from the Bangladeshi Community in Swansea. Funded by Swansea University £13, 485.

2000-2002 An Evaluation of Sure Start and Children and Youth Partnership Programmes in Caerphilly. Funded by Caerphilly County Borough Council £53,657.

Selected Publications

Merrell J (2008) Promoting Inclusive Partnership Working in Carnwell R and Buchanan J (Eds) Effective Practice in Health, Social Care and Criminal Justice (2nd ed), Open University Press, Maidenhead, Berkshire (in press).

Williams C, Merrell J Rance J, Olumide G, Saltus R & Hawthorne K (2007) A critical reflection of the research priorities for improving the health and social care to Black and minority ethnic groups Journal of Diversity in Health and Social Care 4(3):193-197

Merrell J, Carnwell R, Williams A, Allen D & Griffiths L (2007) A survey of school nursing provision in the UK. Journal of Advanced Nursing 59 (5): 463-473

Merrell J, Kinsella F, Murphy F, Philpin S and Ali A (2006) Accessibility and equity of health and social care services: exploring the views and experiences of Bangladeshi carers in South Wales, UK. Journal of Health and Social Care in the Community 14 (3):197-205

Merrell J, Kinsella F, Murphy F, Philpin S and Ali A (2005) Support needs of carers of dependent adults from a Bangladeshi community. Journal of Advanced Nursing 51(6):549-557

Watts T, Merrell J, Murphy F and Williams A (2004) Promoting breast health; addressing the information needs of minority ethnic women in the UK. Journal of Advanced Nursing 47 (5):526-535

Merrell J (2000) Ambiguity: Exploring the Complexity of Roles and Boundaries when Working with Volunteers in Well Woman Clinics. Social Science and Medicine 51: 93-102

Merrell J (2000) Working with Volunteers in a Community Well-Woman Setting. Community Practitioner, 73 (2): 466-469

Merrell J (2000) “You Don’t Do it for Nothing”: Women’s Experiences of Volunteering in Two Community Well Woman Clinics. Health and Social Care in the Community 8 (1): 31-39

Merrell J and Williams A (1999) Synergy: Working Together with Volunteers in Community well Woman Clinics. Journal of Advanced Nursing 30 (2): 489-496