Liza is a Senior Lecturer in Applied Psychology, who joined GCU in February 2022, contributing to teaching and research supervision on the HCPC and BPS-accredited, practitioner doctoral programmes in Counselling Psychology, Health Psychology and Sport and Exercise Psychology.
As a Chartered (BPS) and Registered (HCPC) Counselling Psychologist, Liza has extensive experience in NHS and independent practice of providing assessment and psychological therapy for adults experiencing a wide variety of mental health and life difficulties.
As a dual-qualified, practice-academic Liza is passionate about conducting research informed by clinical practice that contributes to social justice and meaningful outcomes.
She has a strong academic background and a PhD by research from the University of Glasgow. Her research interests include promoting psychologically informed healthcare to prevent medical trauma and improve mental health, in particular, for people with lifelong health conditions. Liza's recent work includes exploring disempowering aspects of medical care (such as the hospital gown) and developing a measure of psychological safety (NPSS), grounded in Polyvagal Theory, with international collaborators.
For over a decade, Liza has been a passionate health advocate for improved healthcare, psychological support and social inclusion for people born with a heart condition consistent with the civic and community commitments of GCU. This includes sitting on various NHS health committees, successfully campaigning the Scottish Government for national healthcare standards, co-creating the Scarred FOR life photography exhibition and involvement in projects such as iSupport (an international, rights-based collaborative to support paediatric patients during medical procedures). She is voluntarily involved with various international third sector organisations to this end. including The Somerville Heart Foundation and Global Arch.
Liza's teaching and supervision across the practitioner doctoral programmes reflect her expertise in CBT, (complex) trauma, medical trauma, psychological safety and tackling ableism.
Liza is a member of the Child and Adolescent Health and Ageing Well research groups.