ORIEL Lead: Ríona Mc Ardle
Senior Research Fellow/ NIHR Three Schools Dementia Career Development Fellow
Public Patient Involvement and Engagement Lead, NIHR Biomedical Research Centre’s Digital Health Theme
Inequities Lead, Technology Empowered Dementia Independence (TEDI) EPSRC Dementia Network Plus
ORIEL’s vision is to advance an inclusive and equitable future for later-life mobility by transforming how we understand, measure, and support movement in real-world settings through digitally-hybrid solutions.
We work to generate meaningful digital mobility outcomes across ageing and neurodegenerative conditions, including multiple dementia subtypes, Parkinson’s disease, and advanced later-life ageing, and in those who support them, such as carers and families.
Through robust digital health solutions, advanced analytics, and participatory research within local, national and global settings, ORIEL aims to identify digital biomarkers of mobility change, co-design mobility support strategies, and accelerate the responsible implementation of digital tools into diverse health and social care systems.
Central to our vision is digital inclusion: ensuring that innovations in mobility monitoring and support work for everyone, particularly under-served, under-represented, and marginalised groups across cultural, economic, and geographical contexts.
ORIEL Team
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Jack Lumsdon
ESRC NineDTP PhD Student
PhD Title: Cross-contextual comparison of physical activity in people with Parkinson’s in the UK and Sub-Saharan Africa: Exploring the influence of disease related and socioecological factors
Supervisors: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle, Dr Tash Fothergill-Misbah, Professor Katie Brittain
Email: j.lumsdon2@newcastle.ac.uk
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Megan Hanrahan
Newcastle NIHR BRC PhD Student / Research Assistant
PhD Title: Measuring what matters - a representative exploration of experiences of mobility loss in people with Parkinson’s disease and their carers to inform digital mobility assessment
Supervisors: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle, Professor Katie Brittain
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Jenny Wales
Newcastle NIHR BRC PhD Student
PhD Title: Characterising Sedentary Behaviour Across the Spectrum of Cognitive Impairment Using Digital Technology (SedCog)"
Supervisors: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle, Dr Silvia Del Din, Dr Chloe Hinchcliffe, Professor Alison Yarnall
Email: j.wales3@newcastle.ac.uk
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Abigail Dsouza
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Aoife Hampson
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Ella Willoughby
ORIEL Studies
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ActivDem
Identifying modifiable psychosocial outcomes to maintain physical ACTIVity and promote independence in DEMentia
Funder: NIHR Advanced Fellowship, NIHR Three Schools DementiaPrincipal Investigator: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle
Team members: Jenny Wales
This study is linked to the DETERMIND cohort (PI: Professor Sube Banerjee, University of Nottingham)
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EMBrACe
Enhancing Mobility support for people with dementia: Bridging the gap between needs And Care
Funder: NIHR Three Schools Dementia
Principal Investigator: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle
Co-investigators: Prof Katie Brittain, Prof Louise Robinson, Prof Lynn Rochester, Dr Andrew Kingston, ProfYvonne Birks (Uni of York), Dr Manpreet Bains, Dr Rupinder Bajwa (Uni of Nottingham), Prof Vicki Goodwin, Dr Abi Hall (Uni of Exeter), Prof Angel Chater (Uni of Bedfordshire)
Team members: Abigail Dsouza
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ActivDyad
Investigating the social and environmental contexts of habitual walking ACTIVities in older adult DYADs: A feasibility study
Funder: Art of Healthy Ageing Network, UKRIPrincipal Investigator: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle
Team members: Jenny Wales
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GaitDem
What can gait analysis tell us about dementia and its subtypes? An integrated study of brain and behaviour
Funder: Alzheimer’s Society, Newcastle’s NIHR Biomedical Research CentrePrincipal Investigator: Professor Lynn Rochester
Study Lead: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle
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DMS Atypical
Characterising digital mobility signatures of atypical dementia
Funder: Alzheimer’s Research UKPrincipal Investigator: Dr Keir Yong, UCL
Newcastle Lead & Co-Investigator: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle
Team members: Dr Cameron Kirk, Dr Silvia Del Din (Co-I)
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Measuring What Matters
Measuring what matters - in whom it matters - ensuring diversity and equity in Parkinson’s research and care
Funder: Michael J Fox FoundationPrincipal Investigator: Professor Katie Brittain
Co-investigators: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle, Prof Lynn Rochester, Dr Alison Keogh (Trinity College Dublin)
Team members: Jack Lumsdon, Megan Hanrahan
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Measuring what matters: Africa
Measuring what matters: A cross-cultural mapping of the meaningfulness of validated digital mobility outcomes in people with Parkinson’s disease in Ghana and Kenya
Funder: Centre for Transformative Neuroscience, Newcastle University
Principal Investigator: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle
Co-Investigators: Dr Tash Fothergill-Misbah, Prof Katie Brittain, Prof Richard Walker, Prof Lynn Rochester
Team members: Jack Lumsdon, Abigail Dsouza
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Stepping Forward Together
Stepping Forward Together: Mobilising Lived Experience to Strengthen Parkinson’s Mobility Awareness Across Sub-Saharan Africa
Funder: International Science Partnerships Fund
Principal Investigator: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle
Co-Investigators: Dr Tash Fothergill-Misbah, Professor Katie Brittain
Team members: Abigail Dsouza, Jack Lumsdon, Ella Willoughby, Aoife Hampson
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The Greatham Project
Co-producing equitable dementia support: evaluating and improving day care and almshouse services to enhance wellbeing, inclusion, and social connection in areas of high deprivation
Funder: Research Excellence Development Award, Newcastle University
Co-investigator: Prof Katie Brittain
Team members: Aoife Hampson, Ella Willoughby
This project is in partnership with the Greatham Foundation, Hartlepool
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TEDI
Technology Empowered Dementia Independence Network
Funder: EPSRC Network Plus
Principal Investigator: Professor Arlene Astell, Northumbria University
Inequities Lead: Dr Ríona Mc Ardle