Megan Watkins
Head of the Public Mental Health Implementation Centre
Megan is the Head of the Public Mental Health Implementation Centre and is responsible for overseeing the design and implementation of research plans, leading proposals and funding bids, team development and methodological support.
She joined the NCCMH in 2023 as a senior researcher and served as principal investigator for a research programme into prejudice, discrimination and personality disorders, promoting compassionate care. Megan instigated the researchers’ reflective practice initiative and is a College Health and Safety Committee member.
Megan is a chartered psychologist, fellow of the Royal Society for Public Health and holds a PhD in Clinical Psychology from the University of Liverpool. Following doctoral research, Megan worked in health services research, the arts and public health. She was the nominated research staff member on the academic board at London Southbank University. Megan is an experienced mentor and has taught advanced qualitative methods.
Megan has 12 years’ experience in leading mental health research and evaluations. She has collaborated with a range of funders, and contributed to evidence-based recommendations in community, high secure, and intensive care settings. Megan has an interest in innovative applications of discourse analysis.
Key publications
Watkins M, Vangeli E, Ahmed K, Sykes S, Wills, J. Barriers and facilitators to the adoption of behavioural science in a local authority. Behavioural Science and Public Health Network. Autumn/Winter 2023. https://www.bsphn.org.uk/publication/barriers-and-facilitators-to-the-adoption-of-behavioural-science-in-a-local-authority
Watkins M, Mallion JS, Frings D, Wills J, Sykes S, Whittaker A. Public health messages during a global emergency through an online community: a discourse and sentiment analysis. Frontiers in Digital Health. 2023;5:1130784. doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fdgth.2023.1130784
Watkins M, Mallion JS, Frings D, Wills J, Sykes S, Whittaker A. Doing public health differently: How can public health departments engage with local communities through social media interventions? Public Health in Practice. 2023;6:100412. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.puhip.2023.100412
Watkins M, Naylor K, Corcoran R. Beyond the sentence: Shared reading within a high secure hospital. Frontiers in Psychology: Section Psychology for Clinical Settings. 2022;13:1015498. doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1015498