Prof Ann Blandford: digital health pioneer, on her career journey & work on long COVID #5

eWorkLife: work, life and wellbeing

Anna Cox talks to Professor Ann Blandford, who is an expert in digital health technologies. We talk about the importance of progressive teachers who could see where technology was heading and how they helped shape her early choices, how her rebellious streak led her to study maths at Cambridge before embarking on a career in computer science, and the challenges she faced as a woman managing a career and a young family – which meant that at one point her baby was sleeping under her desk in the office while she worked. We also discuss her research – from designing computer simulations so that nuclear engineers could try out their ideas safely, to developing safety-critical systems, to her current research in digital health that's empowering people with long COVID to try out what works for them when managing their health.

Ann Blandford is Professor of Human Computer Interaction in the Department of Computer Science at UCL and a member of UCLIC, the UCL Interaction Centre. She served as director of UCLIC, director of the UCL Institute of Digital Health and Deputy Director of the Institute of Healthcare Engineering. She was a Suffrage Science Award holder, a winner of the prestigious IFUPTC Thirteen Pioneer in Human Computer Interaction awards, and has been elected to the SIG CHI Academy.

Find out more about eWorkLife, including tips for managing your own wellbeing and work-life balance, on our website https://www.eworklife.co.uk/

Episode transcript and show-notes: https://www.eworklife.co.uk/podcast/

Follow us on twitter @_e_worklife and @annacox_

Music credit: ScottHolmesMusic.com

Producer: Clare Casson