Dr Ruby Lipson-Smith
Research Program: Brain Sciences
Lab: The Age Lab
Position
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Biography
Dr Ruby Lipson-Smith is an environmental psychology and healthcare researcher with a particular interest in sub-acute healthcare environments, especially rehabilitation and residential aged care. Her research challenges how healthcare buildings and programs are designed and used, their purpose, and the impact they have on users' experience, behaviour, health, and cognition. The aim of her research is to understand how we can optimise the design of these spaces to enhance wellbeing, support cognition and memory, and promote recovery. With a background in psychology and healthcare services research, Ruby has been involved in creating and testing new programs, technologies, and spaces in many different healthcare contexts, including stroke, oncology, palliative care, dietetics, and nursing. She completed her PhD in 2020 at the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health with a thesis titled ‘Space for recovery after stroke: Exploring the role of the physical environment in inpatient rehabilitation facilities’. With a focus on co-design methods and interdisciplinary research, Ruby collaborates with people with lived experience, architects, healthcare designers, residential aged care facility providers, and policy makers, including the Australasian Healthcare Facility Guidelines, to promote the translation of her research into practice and optimise the design of healthcare environments.
Research Interests
- Environmental psychology
- Healthcare environments
- Healthy aging
- Cognition and memory
- Wellbeing
- Technology in healthcare
Qualifications and Honours
- PhD - The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, The University of Melbourne
- BSc(hons) in psychology and neuroscience, The University of Melbourne
- BA in history, The University of Melbourne
Publications
My publications can be found on my ORCiD page.