Karen is Professor of Ageing, Frailty and Dementia at the University of Stirling, Scotland.  Drawing on her experience as a former Chief Executive of Down Syndrome Scotland where she first worked alongside people with Down syndrome, Karen now leads a research team that includes co-researchers and advisors with an intellectual disability and dementia. Recent research has included:  

  • Life through a Lens, non-pharmacological interventions with people who have an intellectual disability and dementia 
  • Stand by Me, relationships between couples with intellectual disability when one partner has a diagnosis of dementia.  

Karen has developed and delivers award-winning training for health and social care staff on intellectual disability and dementia. Her evidence-based resources and accessible guides for people with an intellectual disability, such as Jenny’s Diary, have been widely translated.   

Karen is a member of the Alzheimer Europe Expert Advisory panel and secretary of the Down Syndrome Research Group for the International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disability (IASSIDD). She is a reviewer for the WHO Global Dementia Observatory Knowledge Exchange Platform.