Helen Grace Lowes MA MSc BSc (Hons) DipHE SFHEA
Associate Head - School of Health and Social Care
Summary
Helen is a registered Operating Department Practitioner (ODP) and an Associate Head for the School of Health and Social Care. Her current responsibilities relate to Practice based learning for our Allied Health Professions & Social Work. Helen has over 25 years’ experience in the healthcare sector and 15 years in the higher education sector and is passionate about healthcare education and the development of the healthcare workforce.
About
Helen is an Associate Head for the School of Health and Social Care. Her current responsibilities relate to Practice based learning for our Allied Health Professions & Social Work.
Helen is a qualified and registered ODP. Though Helen's most recent clinical activity as an ODP is in the field of obstetrics to support maternity services during COVID, she has experience working in gynaecology, neurosurgery, and interventional radiology.
Helen is a member of AfPP, CODP, and sits on the CODP Education and Standards committee. Helen is a peer reviewer for the Journal of Perioperative Practice and visitor for the HCPC. Helen has a number of publications related to the field of ODP and healthcare education.
Helen has over 25 years’ experience in the healthcare sector and 15 years in the higher education sector. She has led on two Degree programmes and has experience as an external examiner. She also led the development of simulation and clinical skills for the Department of Allied Health Professions and is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and organised and chaired the SHU ODP national conference on 3 occasions.
Helen has been a senior manager in the NHS, has worked in a workforce consultancy role, and was formerly the National lead for education and training for the ODP profession for NHS England, scoping innovation and the education and training requirements for the current, and future ODP and AHP workforce.
In 2024, Helen received the inaugural Chief Allied Health Professions Officer’s Gold Award for Excellence. The award has been developed to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence, where a significant, outstanding and exceptional contribution has been made by individual members of the AHP community in England. The recipients consistently lead by example, demonstrating strong NHS values and high levels of commitment and quality through their role.
https://www.shu.ac.uk/news/all-articles/latest-news/ahp-academic-awards
Specialist areas of interest
Operating Department Practitioners & theatre workforce – Education, research, careers
Career and Professional Development for Allied Health professions (AHP)
AHP workforce development & reform
Leadership in Health and Care
Equality, diversity & inclusion related to health and the healthcare workforce
Contemporary Roles in Healthcare Practice
Medical Law, Ethics and Moral Philosophy
Simulation & Human Factors
Healthcare Research
Applied Science - Anatomy and Physiology
Teaching
School of Health and Social Care
College of Health, Wellbeing and Life Sciences
Operating Department Practice, theatres & critical care
Applied Science
Research and Writing for Publication
Dissertation supervision
Interprofessional education
Leadership
Courses
Operating Department Practice
Research
Lowes, RHG (2015). A Study to Determine the Roles of Operating Department Practitioners (ODP’s) in Contemporary Healthcare.
Publications
Journal articles
White, N., Lowes, R.H.G., & Hormis, A. (2015). Understanding how human factors can cause errors in the operating theatre. Journal of Operating Department Practitioners, 3 (2), 82-88. http://doi.org/10.12968/jodp.2015.3.2.82
Posters
Lowes, H., Mcnamara, J., Naylor, S., Newton, E., & Timms, J. (2017). A multidisciplinary approach to teaching basic life support. Presented at: Health Education England Clinical Skills and Simulation Conference, Leeds, 2017
Other activities
I hold posts for the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), the College of Operating Department Practitioners (CODP) and I am a peer reviewer for the Journal of Perioperative Practice.