Born and brought up in the northwest of Mexico; I am second-generation Mexican Japanese. I completed a BSc in Communication and Media Studies at Tecnologico de Monterrey (Monterrey, Mexico) followed by a MSc in Prospective and Strategic Future Studies at Escuela de Gobierno y Transformacion Publica (Monterrey, Mexico). I then pursued a PhD in Sociology at the University of Glasgow (UK) on a project looking at the lived experiences of ageing among Mexican women. During my PhD studies and thereafter I held part-time posts as lecturer/tutor at Glasgow Caledonian University and the University of Glasgow. In early 2023 I joined the University of Dundee as Lecturer in the School of Health Sciences.

I have been involved in externally funded research projects exploring for instance, older LGBTQ+ adults’ lived experiences of end-of-life care; co-creating age friendly cities and communities; and the impact of climate change on vulnerable communities in the Global South, among other topics.

Methods for data collection and analysis

• Qualitative research (e.g., in-depth interviews, focus groups, walk-along interviews, photo-voice)
• Community-based participatory research
• Thematic, and Discourse analysis
• Social media analysis, and Cybermetrics (research evaluation)
• Community mapping, and knowledge cafes
• Scoping reviews

Along with my interest in researching lived experiences of ageing and later life in relation to health, wellbeing, and marginalisation issues, I am interested in analysing digitally mediated healthcare information and communication and online health communities, particularly discursive practices on social media. I have undertaken research in this area as part of the Statistical Cybermetrics and Research Evaluation Group at University of Wolverhampton.

I’m also interested in integrating meaningful community involvement and stakeholder engagement to health and care research; this is an area I was contributing to at my previous research post at the NIHR Global Health Research Unit on Respiratory Health (RESPIRE) at the University of Edinburgh.