Dr James P. Gavin BSc, MSc, PhD, FHEA
Lecturer in Occupational Therapy
Dr James Gavin is a Lecturer of Occupational Therapy within Health Sciences at the University of Southampton.
My research focuses on translating knowledge from human physiology to health sciences, particularly in improving functional mobility using everyday activities as physical exercise.
I integrate musculoskeletal physiology and biomechanics in designing practical solutions for the physical and psychosocial health of adults, with conditions limiting daily activities.
My interest arises from: i) observations during doctoral research that an individual’s psychology, influences their physiology (particularly in neuromuscular fatigue), ii) my practice of multidisciplinary research, and iii) the knowledge that exercise training principles can be applied from athletes, in optimising performance, to the general population in improving functional health.
In 2009, I obtained an MSc Exercise Physiology and then progressed onto a PhD examining “glycogen availability, fatigue and exercise-induced muscle damage”. I then worked as a research fellow at Liverpool John Moores University in 2013, on a New Dynamics of Ageing project examining “the biomechanical constraints of stair negotiation in old age”. More recently, lecturing at Bournemouth University my work follows doctoral student research and an international ECR collaboration. These are:
- Inspiratory muscle training for functional ability and balance in healthy, and frail older adults
- The identification and management of frailty in Brazil and the UK
I am also an expert member of the NHS (Hampshire A) Research Ethics Committee.