‘Blend, observe and adapt’: Professor Ann John shares lessons from her research career

Professor Ann John is Director of the new Health and Care Research Wales funded National Centre for Suicide Prevention and Self-Harm Research where she is focussing on transforming research into practical outcomes.  

She is a professor in Public Health and Psychiatry at the Swansea University Medical School and has been a recipient of a Health and Care Research Wales personal award. She chaired the National Advisory Group to the Welsh Government on the prevention of suicide and self-harm from 2014-2024.  She currently chairs the British Standards Institute Suicide Prevention Standard Committee and The Royal Foundations National Suicide Prevention Network.

Professor John delivered a TED-style talk at the Health and Care Research Wales’ tenth annual conference reflecting on her research career with  photos of Shirley Temple, Kathryn Hepburn, Cary Grant and her Grandfather behinds her.

Drawing on her experience growing up between two cultures, she explained how learning to “blend, observe and adapt” fostered empathy, strengthened her clinical work and shaped her research. She told the audience:

“Your difference isn’t something to hide, it gives you an edge.”

She encouraged researchers to maintain curiosity and recognise the privilege of being able to think and read for a living. 

“Thanks for sticking with that,” she told her younger self.

Most importantly she urged the audience to stick with their passions, adding:

“Passion means that you can translate your research into change and stick through all the ups and downs.”

Professor John discussed how her team challenged traditional narratives in suicide prevention, shifting focus beyond psychiatry to include primary care and debunking myths such as men not seeking help, asking us to think about how we respond to men in distress. 

One of her significant research projects was the Self-Harm wEb Portal Cymru (SHeP-Cymru), a studentship funded by Health and Care Research Wales and completed in 2020. The project explored the lack of comprehensive monitoring of self-harm outside of emergency department settings.

Professor John describes her career as a blend of clinical care and research with a shared goal: making a meaningful difference to people’s lives.

Find out more about Professor John by watching her TED-style talk delivered at the 2025 Health and Care Research Wales conference.