Gemma McKenna

Gemma McKenna is an Assistant Professor in the Health Services Management Centre (HSMC), and specialises in child and adolescent mental health, public access and usage of urgent and emergency care services, with particular focus on patient centred care and vulnerable groups.

She has worked with the Department of Health and Social Care, the Cabinet Office, Department for Education, and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and the European Commission to advise on the future of health services and small business development. As a chosen Commissioning Partner (through UK charity Fixers) for Government Task Force on Adolescent Mental Health her contributions include evidence for ‘Future in Mind’ Department of Health Guidance on the future of young people’s mental health and with The British Youth Council around young people’s mental health organised by the House of Commons Youth Select Committee. As well as for the Education Committee on the future of careers guidance for young people. Her work with young people with eating disorders has contributed to Parliamentary questions and informed debates around the improvement of community based services to support young people earlier and reduce the need for in-patient care.

More recently, her work at HSMC on the government's children and young people's mental health early evaluation and Green Paper has helped to contribute to a parliamentary question about children and young people’s mental health and parliamentary briefings about access to mental health support for schools and colleges for children and young people with mild to moderate mental health concerns.

When Gemma is not at work, she can be found wearing sequins and dancing to late 90s and early 00s house music. Her sequin cape has been known to make appearances at academic events.