Dr Penny Rapaport is a clinical psychologist and NIHR Advanced Fellow in the Division of Psychiatry at University College London. She has worked for many years in NHS services for older people with complex physical and mental health needs. Her research interests include the development, testing and implementation of scalable and sustainable psychosocial dementia care and support interventions, accessible to vulnerable and socially excluded populations.
Penny has been awarded a five-year advanced postdoctoral fellowship, funded by the NIHR. Her research aims to identify and test ways to support older people with memory problems in hostel accommodation, facilitating their transition to suitable and settled homes. This will involve in depth ethnographic research exploring the lived experience of older people experiencing memory problems and homelessness, coproduction of a care and support-based intervention, and initial feasibility testing of this intervention within hostel settings.