Professor Tracy Finch

Professor

Department: Nursing, Midwifery & Health

Tracy is Professor of Healthcare & Implementation Science in the Department of Nursing, Midwifery & Health, having joined Northumbria University in November 2017. Tracy has a background in health psychology, with broad experience in teaching and research. She has built her academic career in the UK with appointments at Manchester University & Newcastle University, after completing her PhD in 1999, from Deakin University, Australia.

Tracy’s research focuses on how we can understand and support the implementation of complex interventions in health, care and wellbeing. Tracy is known for her work in implementation science, most notably Normalization Process Theory (NPT), of which she is co-developer, and for developing tools and assessment instruments to support non-academic users conducting implementation work in practice settings. Key areas of Tracy’s current work include development and evaluation of theory-informed implementation toolkits (eg. ItFits-toolkit), advancing conceptual and practical work on ‘tailored implementation’, and on understanding how implementation outcome measurements can be more pragmatic (eg. NoMAD). Leading process evaluations in complex intervention trials and other studies, her research is applied to a broad range of health issues, health and care interventions, and new care processes and pathways.

Campus Address

Room B126 Coach Lane Campus West
Northumbria University
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE7 7XA

Email Tracy

Research Themes and Scholarly Interests

Key areas of expertise:

Implementation science - theory and tools
Health and social care interventions
Process evaluation methodology

Key current projects include:

IDEAS: InterDisciplinary Evaluation of complex innovations in heAlth And Social care. National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) National Evaluation Team. 2025-2030.

PHORM: The development and co-design of a (person-centred) primary care (clinical) PHarmacist led Osteoporosis Review for optimising Medicines. Royal Osteoporosis Society. 2023-2025.

Curious about Care: Promoting values-based recruitment in community dementia support through situational judgement tests. NIHR Research for patient benefit. 2023-2025.

REFUEL-MS: Developing, optimising and implementing a blended digital self-management treatment for fatigue in multiple sclerosis. NIHR Programme Grants for Applied Research. 2022-2027.

EQUIPD: An evaluation of quality improvement collaboratives aligned to a national audit to improve the uptake of insulin pumps for people with diabetes. NIHR Health and Social Care Delivery Research (HSDR). 2022-2025.

What is ‘equivalence’ in policy custody healthcare? Economic and Social Research Council. 2021-2025.

Health checks for autistic adults: Design and evaluation of an autism-specific health check for use with autistic adults in NHS Primary Care. Autistica and NHS England. 2018-2025.

Key completed projects:

ImpleMentAll: Towards evidence-based tailored implementation strategies for eHealth. European Commission H2020. 2017-2021. Key outputs: ItFits-toolkit for self-guided tailored implementation strategies and I-STEM Model and resources for stakeholder engagement for implementation.

NoMAD: Improving the normalisation of complex interventions: Developing quantitative measures for users based on Normalisation Process Theory. Economic and Social Research Council. 2012-2015. Key outputs: (1) Measure development and (2) validation.

Key Publications

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Assessment and management of late radiation-associated dysphagia after treatment for head and neck cancer: A scoping review and survey of UK speech and language therapists, Sellstrom, D., Haighton, C., Finch, T., O'Hara, J., Patterson, J. Jan 2025, In: International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders
Author Correction: Effectiveness of physical activity interventions on reducing perceived fatigue among adults with chronic conditions: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials: Correction to: Scientific Reports https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-41075-8, published online 04 September 2023, Barakou, I., Sakalidis, K., Abonie, U., Finch, T., Hackett, K., Hettinga, F. 22 Jan 2025, In: Scientific Reports
Clinical Profile and Referral Pathways in Late Radiation-Associated Dysphagia (Late-RAD): A Consecutive Case Series, Sellstrom, D., O'Hara, J., Haighton, C., Finch, T., Patterson, J. 16 Apr 2025, In: Clinical Otolaryngology
Health-related quality of life associated with fatigue, physical activity and activity pacing in adults with chronic conditions, Barakou, I., Seves, B., Abonie, U., Finch, T., Hackett, K., Hettinga, F. 28 Jan 2025, In: BMC Sports Science, Medicine and Rehabilitation
Insights from Healthcare Professionals on Enhancing Fatigue Management in Chronic Conditions: A Qualitative Study, Barakou, I., Hackett, K., Hettinga, F., Finch, T. 27 Apr 2025, In: Disability and Rehabilitation
“It’s a delicate dance”: How informal caregivers experience the role and responsibilities of supporting someone living with a lower-grade glioma, Rimmer, B., Balla, M., Dutton, L., Burns, R., Araújo-Soares, V., Finch, T., Lewis, J., Gallagher, P., Williams, S., Menger, F., Sharp, L. 1 Apr 2025, In: Neuro-Oncology Practice
Late radiation-associated dysphagia (late-RAD) following treatment for head and neck cancer: A scoping review, Sellstrom, D., Patterson, J., Finch, T., O'Hara, J., Haighton, C. 9 May 2025, In: Supportive Care in Cancer
Managing fatigue transdiagnostically: a qualitative study among people with chronic conditions on optimizing daily activity, Barakou, I., Hackett, K., Abonie, U., Hettinga, F., Finch, T. 24 Apr 2025, In: Disability and Rehabilitation
Supporting someone after their stroke: family members’ views and experiences of self-management, McCarthy, L., Kylén, M., Gustavsson, C., Finch, T., Jones, F., Elf, M. 9 May 2025, In: Disability and Rehabilitation
‘A Constant Black Cloud’: The Emotional Impact of Informal Caregiving for Someone With a Lower-Grade Glioma, Rimmer, B., Balla, M., Dutton, L., Lewis, J., Burns, R., Gallagher, P., Williams, S., Araújo-Soares, V., Finch, T., Sharp, L. 1 Feb 2024, In: Qualitative Health Research

Current and Recent Projects

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Developing an NIHR Health and Social care Delivery Research (HSDR) national evaluation team: InterDisciplinary Evaluation of complex innovations in heAlth and Social care (IDEAS) Centre, Bate, A. (Principal Investigator), Finch, T. (Co Investigator), National Institute for Health Research, 01/02/25 - 31/01/30, £3,028,752.00

Professional Activity

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Invited talk: ASME, AGM: How can theory help us? Exploring Normalization Process Theory (NPT) as a tool for implementing new ideas in practice and education 2019

PGR Supervision

Dara Roisin Fallen Bailey To develop an enhanced understanding of the cultural and organisational factors influencing the implementation of physical activity and early mobilisation on acute surgical wards within the setting of a multidisciplinary ERAS pathway. Start Date: 01/10/2024
Ioulia Barakou ??Understanding and Enhancing Fatigue Management in Chronic Conditions: Exploring the Role of Activity Pacing and Physical Activity? Start Date: 01/04/2022
Jane Douthwaite An action research study of the process of co-created improvements in a Midwifery service context and stakeholders experience of participation Start Date: 24/07/2020
Karen Corder 'How can patient self-management of the physical and psychological aspects of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) be improved through co-design approaches to intervention?' Start Date: 01/03/2019