Dr Rhiannon Phillips

• Level 5 cross-disciplinary module, Health and Well-being Psychology
• Level 6 cross-disciplinary module, Health behaviour Change

• ​​​​MSc in Health Psychology (Level 7), Understanding long-term conditions, research method
  

I am the Cardiff Metropolitan University Psychology Pathway Lead for the ESRC Welsh Graduate School for the Social Sciences.

I provide supervision for our MSc, MRes and Doctoral programmes in health psychology and health services research.

Current Doctoral Students:

• Fiona Sinclair, Advancement of Food Safety Culture in NHS Hospital Catering and Ward Level Food-Service Using Targeted Interventions

• Zoë Abbott, Co-production of pre-conception health for women with inflammatory arthritis (Funding: Health and Care Research Wales)

Past Doctoral Students:

• Gladys Makuta, Breath analysis for diagnosis of pneumonia in children (Funding: Gates Foundation)

• Timothy Pickles, Rasch analysis in patient reported outcome measures for disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis (Funding: NIHR doctoral fellowship)
  

Qualifications

• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, 2020 - present

• Registered Practitioner Psychologist, Health & Care Professions Council 2009 - present

• Chartered Health Psychologist, British Psychological Society 2007 - present

• PhD in Clinical Health Psychology University of Leeds 2000 – 2004

• BSc Hons in Psychology (1st Class) University of Wales Swansea 1996 – 1999
  
  

Awards

• Royal College of General Practitioners Research Paper of the Year Award for the Butler et al. (2019) PACE Study NEJM article, Clinical Research category and Overall Winner. 

• Cardiff University Medic Star Awards (2017), PRIME Centre Wales, research team of the year winners.

• Health and Care Research Wales (2017), STAR Family Study: Patient and Public Involvement award finalists. 

• Cardiff University Medic Star Awards (2016), PRIME Centre Wales research team of the year finalists.

Research interests

• Prevention and management of respiratory tract infections

• Supporting shared decision-making in the context of reproductive health

• Development and evaluation of complex interventions

Recent publications

For full list of publications, please see: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4256-4598

• Purchase, T., Cooper, A., Price, D. Dorgeat, E, Williams, H, Bowie, P, Fournier, JP, Hibbert, PD, Edwards, AG, Phillips, R, Joseph-Williams, N, Carson-Stevens, A. Analysis of applying a patient safety taxonomy to patient and clinician-reported incident reports during the COVID-19 pandemic: a mixed methods study. BMC Med Res Methodol 2023, 23, 234. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12874-023-02057-6
• Williams, D, Esan, OB, Schlüter, DK, Taylor-Robinson, D, Paranjothy, S, Duckers, J, Goodchild, N, Phillips, R. Sharing decisions on reproductive goals: A mixed-methods study of the views of women who have cystic fibrosis. Journal of Cystic Fibrosis 2023, 22 (2), 207 - 216 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcf.2023.02.007
• Mc Laughlin L, Jones C, Neukirchinger B, Noyes J, Stone J, Williams H, Williams D, Rapado R, Phillips R, Griffin S. Feminizing care pathways: Mixed-methods study of reproductive options, decision making, pregnancy, post-natal care and parenting amongst women with kidney disease. J Adv Nurs. 2023 Aug;79(8):3127-3146. doi: 10.1111/jan.15659.
• ​Dale, C.; Seage, C.H.; Phillips, R.; James, D. The Role of Medication Beliefs in COVID-19 Vaccine and Booster Uptake in Healthcare Workers: An Exploratory Study. Healthcare 2023, 11, 1967. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11131967

• Grant, A., Brown, A., Ellis, R., Pell, B., Copeland, L., Morris, D., Williams, D., & Phillips, R. Views and experience of breastfeeding in public: a qualitative systematic review. Maternal and Child Nutrition. 2022. 18(4): e13407. doi: 10.1111/mcn.13407

• Phillips, R, Gillespie, D, Hallingberg, B, Evans, J, Taiyari, K, Torrens-Burton, A, Cannings-John, R, Williams, D, Sheils, E, Ashfield-Watt, P, Akbari, A, Hughes, K, Thomas-Jones, E, James, D, &  Wood, F.  Perceived threat of COVID-19, attitudes towards vaccination, and vaccine hesitancy: A prospective longitudinal study in the UK. British Journal of Health Psychology. 2022. 00, 1– 28. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjhp.12606

• Pickles T, Macefield R, Aiyegbusi OL, Beecher, C, Horton, M, Christensen, KB, Phillips, R, Gillespie, D, Choy, E. Patient Reported Outcome Measures for Rheumatoid Arthritis Disease Activity: a systematic review following COSMIN guidelines. RMD Open, 2022; 8:e002093, doi: 10.1136/rmdopen-2021-002093   

• Torrens-Burton A, Goss S, Sutton E, Barawi, K, Longo, M, Seddon, K, Carduff, E, Farnell, JJ, Nelson, A, Byrne, A, Phillips, R, Selman, L, Harrop, E. 'It was brutal. It still is': a qualitative analysis of the challenges of bereavement during the COVID-19 pandemic reported in two national surveys. Palliative Care and Social Practice. 2022. doi:10.1177/26323524221092456

• Phillips R, Taiyari K, Torrens-Burton A, Cannings-John R, Williams D, Peddle, S, Campbell, S, Hughes, K, Gillespie, D, Sellars, P, Pell, B, Ashfield-Watt, P, et al. Cohort profile: The UK COVID-19 Public Experiences (COPE) prospective longitudinal mixed-methods study of health and well-being during the SARSCoV2 coronavirus pandemic. PLOS ONE 2021, 16(10): e0258484. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0258484

• Esan, OB, Schlüter, DK, Phillips, R, Cosgriff, R, Paranjothy, S, Williams, D, Norman, R, Carr, SB, Duckers, J, Taylor-Robinson, D.  Pregnancy rates and outcomes in women with cystic fibrosis in the UK: comparisons with the general population before and after the introduction of disease-modifying treatment, 2003–17. BJOG  2022. 129: 743– 751. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-0528.16957

• Phillips, R., McLaughlin, L., Williams, D., Williams, H., Noyes, J., Jones, C., Oleary, C., Mallett, C. and Griffin, S. (2021), Engaging and supporting women with chronic kidney disease with pre-conception decision-making (including their experiences during COVID 19): A mixed-methods study protocol. J Adv Nurs, 77: 2887-2897. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.14803

• Gillespie D, Francis N, Ahmed H, Hood K, Llor C, White P, Thomas-Jones E, Stanton H, Sewell B, Phillips R, Naik G, Melbye H, Lowe R, Kirby N, Cochrane A, Bates J, Alam MF, Butler C. Associations with Post-Consultation Health-Status in Primary Care Managed Acute Exacerbation of COPD. Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis. 2022;17:383-394, https://doi.org/10.2147/COPD.S340710

• Poortinga, W, Bird, N, Hallingberg, B, Phillips, R, Williams, D. The role of perceived public and private green space in subjective health and wellbeing during and after the first peak of the COVID-19 outbreak, Landscape and Urban Planning, 2021;211, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2021.104092

• Gillespie, D, Butler, CC, Bates, J, Hood, K, Melbye, H, Phillips, R, et al. Associations with antibiotic prescribing for acute exacerbation of COPD in primary care: secondary analysis of a randomised controlled trial. British Journal of General Practice 2021; 71 (705): e266-e272. DOI: 10.3399/BJGP.2020.0823

• Phillips, R., H. Stanton, A. Singh-Mehta, D. Gillespie, J. Bates, M. Gal, E. Thomas-Jones, R. Lowe, K. Hood, C. Llor, H. Melbye, J. Cals, P. White, C. Butler and N. Francis. "C-reactive protein-guided antibiotic prescribing for COPD exacerbations: a qualitative evaluation." British Journal of General Practice 2020, 70 (696): e505-e513. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3399/bjgp20X709865

• Hallingberg, B; Williams, D; Cannings-John, R; Hughes, K; Torrens-Burton, A; Gillespie, D; Sellars, P, Pell, B,  Akbari, A, Ashfield-Watt, P,  James, D, Crone, D, Seage, CH, Perham, N, Poortinga, W, Wahl-Jorgensen, K, Peddle, S, Campbell, S, Blaxland, J, Wood, F, Joseph-Williams, N, Harrop, E, Taiyari, K, Thomas-Jones, E,  Phillips, R. Protocol for a longitudinal mixed-methods study of psychosocial determinants of health behaviour, health and well-being outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic: The UK COVID-19 Public Experiences (COPE) Study. Cardiff Metropolitan University. 2020. https://doi.org/10.25401/cardiffmet.14184857.v1

• Young, C, Phillips, R, Ebenezer, L, Zutt, R, Peall, K. Management of Parkinson's disease during pregnancy: Literature review and multidisciplinary input. Movement Disorders Clinical Practice 2020, 7(4), pp. 419-430. DOI: 10.1002/mdc3.12925

• Francis NA, Gillespie D, White P, Bates J, Lowe R, Sewell B, Phillips R, Stanton H, Kirby N, Wootton M, Thomas-Jones E, Hood K, Llor C, et al. C-reactive protein point-of-care testing for safely reducing antibiotics for acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: the PACE RCT. Health Technol Assess 2020; 24(15):1-108. https://doi.org/10.3310/hta24150

• Pell, B, Williams, D, Phillips, R, Sanders, J, Edwards, A, Choy, E, Grant, A. Using visual timelines in telephone interviews: Reflections and lessons learned from the STAR Family Study. International Journal of Qualitative Methods 2020, 19, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406920913675

• Butler, CC, Gillespie, D, White, P, Bates, J, Lowe, R, Thomas-Jones, E, Wootton, M, Hood, K, Phillips, R, Melbye, H, Llor, C, Cals, J, et al. C-Reactive Protein testing to guide antibiotic prescribing for COPD exacerbations. New England Journal of Medicine 2019. 381: 111-120. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1803185

• Williams, D, Webber, J, Pell, B, Grant, A, Sanders, J, Choy, E, Edwards, A, Taylor, A, Wu, MC, Phillips, R. “Nobody knows, or seems to know, how rheumatology and breastfeeding works": Women's experiences of breastfeeding whilst managing a long-term limiting condition – A qualitative visual methods study. Midwifery. 2019. 78: 91-96. doi: 10.1016/j.midw.2019.08.002

• Copeland, L, Merrett, L, McQuire, C, Grant, A, Goat, N, Tedstone, S, Playle, R, Channon, S, Sanders, J, Phillips, R, Hunter, B, Brown, A, et al. The feasibility and acceptability of providing a novel breastfeeding peer-support intervention informed by Motivational Interviewing. Maternal and Child Nutrition 2019, 15(2), article number: e12703. DOI: 10.1111/mcn.12703

• Phillips, R, Pell, B, Grant, A, Bowen, D, Sanders, J, Taylor, A, Edwards, A, Choy, C, Williams, D. Identifying the unmet information and support needs of women with autoimmune rheumatic diseases during pregnancy planning, pregnancy and early parenting: mixed-methods study. BMC Rheumatology 2018, article number: 21. DOI: 10.1186/s41927-018-0029-4

• Phillips, R, Copeland, L, Grant, A, Sanders, J, Gobat, N, Tedstone, S, Stanton, H, Merrett, L, Rollnick, S, Robling, M, Brown, A, Hunter, B, Fitzsimmons, D, Regan, S, Trickey, H, Paranjothy, S. Development of a novel Motivational Interviewing (MI) informed peer-support intervention to support mothers to breastfeed for longer. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth. 2018. 18:90. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-018-1725-1

• Phillips, R, Williams, D, Bowen, D, Morris, D, Grant, A, Pell, B, Sanders, J, Taylor, A, Choy, E, Edwards, A. Reaching a consensus on research priorities for supporting women with autoimmune rheumatic diseases during pre-conception, pregnancy and early parenting: A Nominal Group Technique exercise with lay and professional stakeholders. Wellcome Open Research 2018, article number: 75. DOI: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.14658.1

• Phillips, R, Copeland, L, Grant, A, Sanders, J, Gobat, N, Tedstone, S, Stanton, H, Merrett, L, Rollnick, S, Robling, M, Brown, A, Hunter, B, Fitzsimmons, D, Regan, S, Trickey, H, Paranjothy, S. Development of a novel Motivational Interviewing (MI) informed peer-support intervention to support mothers to breastfeed for longer. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth. 2018. 18:90. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-018-1725-1  

• Grant, A, McEwan, K, Tedstone, S, Greene, G, Copeland, L, Hunter, B, Sanders, J, Phillips, R, Brown, A, Robling, M, Parnjothy, S. Availability of breastfeeding peer-support in the UK: a cross-sectional survey. Maternal and Child Nutrition 2018, 14(1), article number: e12476. DOI: 10.1111/mcn.12476

The focus of my research is on understanding risk perception and decision making in relation to common infections and reproductive health. Understanding how people make decisions based on their perception of risk, and the perceived benefits of a particular course of action, can be used to develop interventions that support people with making complex decisions that involve balancing risks with an individual's goals, needs and preferences. I am interested in facilitating shared decision-making in healthcare settings, communication of health-related risk, and helping people to build the skills and confidence they need to manage their emotional and behavioural responses to health-related threats, including Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, and psychoeducation. I am leading on the establishment of a Welsh social science rapid response pandemic research network (SABRE Cymru), and a network for the development of technology solutions to support decisions about reproductive goals for people with long-term conditions.

I have been a principal or co-applicant on research grants totalling over £6.5M over the course of my career. I have over 50 publications in peer-reviewed journals, including the New England Journal of Medicine, Lancet Psychiatry, and the BMJ. I am the Applied Psychology and Behaviour Change Research and Innovation Group lead at Cardiff Metropolitan University. I am the research lead for the British Psychological Society Division of Health Psychology and a member of the British Psychological Society Research Board. ​

I am involved with a number of collaborative inter-disciplinary research studies and networks in infectious disease and reproductive health research. Further information can be found by using the following external links.

• The COVID-19 Public Experiences Study (COPE): https://copestudy.yolasite.com

• (CF-PROSPER) Study: https://cfprosper.yolasite.com

• Social and Behavioural Sciences Rapid Response Network for Infectious Diseases (SABRE): https://sabrecymru.uk

• Familiar Study Twitter feed: @FamiliarStudy

• Engaging and supporting women with Chronic Kidney Disease with pre-conception decision-making (CKD-ENGAGE): http://www.kidneyresearchunit.wales/impact-case-studies?id=34

• SOCRETES Study: Patient-reported outcome measures for rheumatoid arthritis symptom severity: development of a computer adaptive test from an item bank using Rasch measurement theory. https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/centre-for-trials-research/research/studies-and-trials/view/socrates
  
  

Professional networking and social media

Twitter: @nannon_phillips

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Rhiannon-Phillips-7

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4256-4598

I act as a reviewer for the National Institute for Health Research Public Health Research, Health and Care Research Wales, and UKRI.

I regularly peer-review articles for internationally recognised journals, including the British Journal of General Practice, International breastfeeding Journal, BMJ Open, EClinical Medicine, Patient Education and Counselling, Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, Child and Adolescent Mental health, and the Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation.

Panels and committees

• Behavioural Science Community of Practice for Wales Steering Group (2022-present)

• British Psychological Society Division of Health Psychology Research Lead (2021-present)

• British Psychological Society Research Board Member (2021-present)

• Cardiff Metropolitan University Applied Psychology Research Ethics Panel (2019-present)

• UK Parliament and Welsh Government register of experts on COVID-19, (2020-present)

• University and Colleges Union Cardiff Metropolitan University branch committee member (2020-2022)

• PRIME Centre Wales national operational group (2015-2019)

• Expert panel for the WRISK project, focusing on understanding and improving the communication of risk relating to pregnancy (2019)
  

Funding awarded

• COVID-19 and common respiratory tract infection-related health behaviours: Development of community-based approaches to reducing the burden of RTIs in Wales, Wales Covid-19 Evidence Centre, 2022-2023. £75k, Co-investigator.

• Development of a decision aid for women of reproductive age with epilepsy considering sodium valproate as a treatment option. Welsh Government, £30k, 2022-2024. Co-Principal Investigator.

• Childhood vaccinations stakeholder experiences reviews. Public Health Wales, £20k. 2022. Co-investigator.

• Exploring the potential benefit of virtual reality to improve the experience, wellbeing and outcomes of people diagnosed with cancer in Wales. Macmillan project partnership, £96k, 2022-2024, Co-investigator

• SUCCEED: Novel decision support intervention to support choice in cervical screening modality, Cancer Research UK Early Detection and Diagnosis Primer Award, £91k, 2022-2023, Co-investigator

• Welsh pandemic and epidemic infectious disease social science research network development, Welsh Innovation Network, £15k, 2022, Principal Investigator

• Pump-priming fund to build a network to develop and evaluate technological solutions to support shared decision-making in relation to reproductive health options for people with long-term conditions, Welsh Innovation Network, £10k, 2022, Principal Investigator.

• Improving UK breastfeeding duration: a salutogenic realist evaluation of English regional success to co-develop a community-based breastfeeding support intervention. Medical Research Council Public Health Intervention Development, £140k. 2022-2023. Co-Investigator. 

• Childhood vaccinations stakeholder review, Public Health Wales, £20k. 2022. Co-Investigator.

• CF PROSPER: Cystic Fibrosis Pregnancy Related Outcome data to Support PERsonal choices. Research for Patient and Public Benefit, Health and Care Research Wales. £228k. 2019-2022. Co-Investigator.

• Patient-reported Outcome Measures for Rheumatoid Arthritis Symptom Severity: development of a computer adaptive test from an item bank using Rasch measurement theory (SOCRATES). Funding: £340k, NIHR Doctoral Fellowship for Timothy Pickles, 2019-2023, supervisor.

• COVID-19 public experiences in Wales: A longitudinal mixed-methods study of attitudes, beliefs, and behaviour in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Sêr Cymru, £127k, 2020-2021, Principal Investigator. 

• Engaging and supporting women with Chronic Kidney Disease with pre-conception decision-making: A mixed-methods study. British Renal Society and Wales Kidney Research Unit, £79k, 2020-2021, Co-Principal Investigator.

• Starting a family when you have inflammatory arthritis: can a co-production approach to creating pre-conception health improve the sustainability of NHS services? Funding: £66k, Health and Care Research Wales Health Studentship Award, 2018-2021. Principal Investigator.

• Wales Centre for Primary and Emergency Care Research (PRIME Centre Wales). Health and Care Research Wales Centre Grant 2018-2020, £1.8M. Co-Investigator.

• Improving the health and quality of life of women with Rheumatic Diseases during family planning, pregnancy and early parenting: women and health professionals' perspectives on needs and priorities. Wellcome Trust ISSF cross-disciplinary award 2015-2016. £20k. Principal Investigator.

• A novel peer-support intervention using Motivational Interviewing for breastfeeding maintenance: a UK feasibility study. 2014-2017, NIHR HTA (13/18/05). £350k. Co-Investigator.

• General Practitioner (GP) use of a C-Reactive Protein (CRP) Point of Care Test (POCT) to help target antibiotic prescribing to patients with Acute Exacerbations of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (AECOPD) who are most likely to benefit (The PACE Study, 2014-2017). NIHR HTA, £1.4m. Co-Investigator.

• A randomised controlled cluster trial comparing the effectiveness and cost effectiveness of a school based cognitive behaviour therapy programme (FRIENDS) in the reduction of anxiety and improvement in mood in children aged 9/10, 24 month follow-up (2013-2014). NIHR PHR. £308k, Co-Investigator.

• A randomised controlled cluster trial comparing the effectiveness and cost effectiveness of a school based cognitive behaviour therapy programme (FRIENDS) in the reduction of anxiety and improvement in mood in children aged 9/10 (2011-2014). NIHR PHR £1.165m. Co-Investigator.