At the School of Health & Wellbeing, Ifunanya aims to explore the lived experiences of marginalised women who access or are trying to access healthcare services in Scotland and recommend practical and sustainable interventions to improve their health outcomes and reduce inequalities. Marginalised women experience inequalities in their access to and overall experience of healthcare services. This is largely due to their needs not fully recognised or addressed by healthcare providers.

After obtaining her MPH with Distinction, she worked as a public health research practitioner funded by the National Institute of Health and Care Research. Here, she worked on collaborative research and evaluation studies for the Talk, Listen, Change, health inequalities research programme which addressed the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on ethnic minorities. The findings and recommendations from this project are published in peer-reviewed journals, help local authorities promote positive health behaviours and improve public health outcomes.

She volunteers at the UN Women UK where she collaborates with a multidisciplinary team to synthesise the evidence base and design research tools which explore the barriers and facilitators to digital access facing marginalised women and girls in the UK. Through these experiences, her research interests in intersectional inequalities, community engagement and women’s health have grown enormously. She is enthusiastic to continue contributing towards improving the health and wellbeing of underrepresented women.

First published: 20 November 2024

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