Professor Frances Bunn 
Professor in Health and Complex Conditions | University of Hertfordshire
Hatfield, England, UNITED KINGDOM
Her research relates to the health and wellbeing of older people with complex health and social care needs - such as dementia and frailty.
Areas of Expertise (7)
Wellbeing
End-Of-Life Care
Social Care
Elderly Living
Dementia
comorbidity
Health
Biography
Professor Frances Bunn is Professor in Health and Complex Conditions at the University of Hertfordshire. Her research relates to the health and wellbeing of older people with complex health and social care needs - such as dementia, comorbidity and frailty. Her work on dementia has included all aspects of the dementia trajectory, from diagnosis to end-of-life care. This includes studies on the diagnosis and treatment of dementia, the organisation and delivery of health and social care services for people with dementia and with a comorbid condition, shared decision-making for people with dementia, and end-of-life care for people living with dementia.
Frances led the CoDem (Comorbidity and Dementia: improving healthcare for people with dementia) study which was one of the first ever studies to look at the needs of people living with dementia and with a comorbid condition. Frances has also been involved in several studies focused on the health and care needs of older people living in long-term care. She is an Editor with the Cochrane Injuries Group and she is an author on more than 80 peer reviewed publications. She is also the University of Hertfordshire’s Theme Champion for Health and Wellbeing Research.
Education (3)
University of Hertfordshire: Ph.D. 2011
University of South Bank: M.Sc., Sociology of Health and Illness 1996
Kings College, London University: B.Sc., Nursing Studies 1988
Affiliations (5)
- Chair of Herts and West Essex Research Strategy Group
- Member of ARC East of England Capacity Building Committee
- Member of INTERDEM
- Member of Alzheimer’s Society Funding Panel
- Member of NIHR Research for Patient Benefit East of England Advisory Committee
Links (2)
Media Mentions (1)
Shifting dementia patients between hospital wards 'can speed up their decline'
Mirror online
2017-01-18
Dr Frances Bunn, lead author of the study, said there were “immediate and simple changes that can be made to improve care for this vulnerable group”.
Articles (5)
Advance care planning for people living with dementia: An umbrella review of effectiveness and experiences
International Journal of Nursing Studies2020 End of life care is often inadequate for people with dementia. Advanced care planning (ACP) has the potential to improve outcomes for people with dementia. The aim of this review is to establish the strength of the evidence and provide decision makers with a clear understanding of what is known about ACP for people living with dementia.
Components of palliative care interventions addressing the needs of people with dementia living in long term care: a systematic review
Journal of the American Medical Directors Association2020 People with dementia requiring palliative care havemultiple needs that require complex, multicomponent interventions. Thisneed is amplified in the long term care setting. The European Associationfor Palliative Care (EAPC) White Paper offers recommendations forpalliative care in dementia and highlights domains of care integral forthis population, thus providing useful guidance to developing suchinterventions.
Setting priorities to inform assessment of care homes’ readiness to participate in healthcare innovation: a systematic mapping review and consensus process
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health2020 Organisational context is known to impact on the successful implementation of healthcare initiatives in care homes. We undertook a systematic mapping review to examine whether researchers have considered organisational context when planning, conducting, and reporting the implementation of healthcare innovations in care homes.
A group intervention to improve quality of life for people with advanced dementia living in care homes: the Namaste feasibility cluster RCT
Health Technology Assessment2020 People with advanced dementia who live and die in nursing homes experience variable quality of life, care and dying. There is a need to identify appropriate, cost-effective interventions that facilitate high-quality end-of-life care provision.
Using non-participant observation to uncover mechanisms: insights from a realist evaluation
Evaluation2019 This article outlines how a realist evaluation of dementia care in hospitals used non-participant observation to support the refinement and testing of mechanisms likely to lead to the use of person-centred care. We found that comments and explanations of their actions from hospital staff during observation periods provided insights into the reasoning that generated their actions for care in real time.
Social