Olivia Swann
Member since 2026
I am excited to join the UKYA to collaborate across disciplines, tackle shared challenges, and help ensure research contributes to a fairer, healthier society.
Bio
Olivia Swann is a Wellcome Early Career Fellow and Honorary Consultant in Paediatric Infectious Disease at the Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh. She is a paediatric infectious diseases consultant, clinical academic and data scientist, driven by a desire to make the world a fairer and healthier place for children and families. Her work brings together child health, housing, and data to understand how the conditions children grow up in affect population health and inequalities.
Olivia leads the Homes, Heat and Healthy Kids study, working with clinicians, researchers, policymakers, and communities to generate evidence that can support practical, real-world change. Alongside this, she cares deeply about the people behind research and the cultures they work in. She is passionate about supporting early-career researchers, especially those who don’t always see themselves reflected in academia, and about creating spaces where people feel able to ask questions, share doubts, and learn from one another. She believes research does its best work when we are collaborative, grounded in lived experience, and focused on improving everyday lives.
