Sophie Gaber

Short presentation

• I am a registered occupational therapist and associate senior lecturer in health sciences with a focus on complex interventions.
• Since 2024, I have been a docent in health sciences specialising in eHealth.
• As a member of the CIRCLE - Complex Intervention Research in Health and Care research group which hosts the strategic research programme U-CARE, my work contributes to U-CARE’s goal to increase wellbeing among people living with somatic disease and their care partners. 

ORCiD: 0000-0001-5804

Keywords

• occupational therapy
• complex interventions
• health equity
• digital health
• community participation
• dementia research
• sleep research
• realist approaches
• narrative methods
• participatory research approaches
• instrument development
• longitudinal research designs
• registry research

Biography

• I am a registered occupational therapist and earned an MSc in occupational therapy from Brunel University London in 2016.
• I moved to Sweden as a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Early Stage Researcher within the EU Horizon 2020 Innovative Training Network: INDUCT (Interdisciplinary Network for Dementia Using Current Technology).
• My doctoral work included international secondments at Alzheimer's Disease International (ADI) and the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), focusing on dissemination and implementation science.
• As a PhD student between 2017-2021, I was elected vice chair and later chair of the Doctoral Student Council at the Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society (NVS), Karolinska Institutet (KI).
• In 2021, I publicly defended my PhD thesis in Medical Sciences at KI.
• From 2021-2025, I was an affiliated researcher to U-CARE.
• In August 2025, I became a formal member and employee of U-CARE.
• During 2021-2024, I completed two postdoctoral positions: first, at KI and then Marie Cederschiöld University College (formerly Ersta Sköndal Bräcke University College).
• As a postdoc, I further developed expertise in participatory research methods with underserved and seldom heard groups, working with an advisory board of women with lived experiences of homelessness. I also cultivated interdisciplinary collaborations involving health and social care, municipalities, civil society, policy, architecture, landscape architecture, design, and information technology.
• I am a member of the international core group responsible for developing, translating, and harmonising the Participation in ACTivities and Places OUTside Home (ACT-OUT) questionnaire.
• The ACT-OUT questionnaire has been widely used in research involving older adults living with and without dementia across several countries, including Sweden, Switzerland, Austria, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. I am currently collaborating with researchers and clinicians to support the instrument's potential implementation in clinical practice.
• Related to this work, I am a member of the core group and lead a working group within the EU-funded COST Action: BOPALiM (Building Opportunities for Participation and Accessibility through lifelong community Mobility), 2024–2028, involving more than 45 researchers and innovators from 20 countries. BOPALiM aims to develop a framework for mobility, driving, and transportation to enhance wellbeing and inclusion among older adults and people with disabilities.
• In late 2023, I became an assistant professor in occupational therapy at Jönköping University, where I continue to teach on the international master’s programme in occupational therapy.
• I also teach within the bachelor’s programme in occupational therapy at Uppsala University (UU).
• At the doctoral level, I teach on the Development and adaptation of complex healthcare interventions course at UU.
• In addition, I keep up-to-date with pedagogical training and have obtained a Higher Education Fellowship from the Higher Education Academy (HEA), United Kingdom.
• In 2024, I became docent in health sciences specialising in eHealth and, in 2025, was recruited as associate senior lecturer in health sciences with a focus on complex interventions at the Department of Women’s and Children’s Health, UU.
• I am also a member of U-CARE's executive committee and its research working group.
• I have served as reviewer for research grant applications and have been awarded research funding from organisations including the Kamprad Family Foundation, FORTE, and the European Commission, both as PI (main applicant) and collaborator (co-applicant).
• I have experience supervising students at first-, second-, and third-cycle levels, with student projects leading to awards and peer-reviewed publications.
• I currently co-supervise three doctoral students at UU, Umeå University, and Jönköping University through the Doctoral School for Integrated Care (collaboration between Dalarna University, Jönköping University, Linköping University and Örebro University), respectively.
• I regularly present at national and international conferences and publish in peer-reviewed scientific journals, including co-authorship with people with lived experience.
• I previously served on the editorial board for BMC Geriatrics and continue to contribute as a peer reviewer for scientific journals and research funding bodies.

Research

My research is characterised by two interconnected tracks united by a common focus on promoting the participation of end users, particularly underserved and seldom heard groups, throughout the development, testing, evaluation, and implementation of complex interventions in healthcare and digital healthcare.

Selected research projects include:

SOVA – Sleep Optimisation interVention for people living with dementia And their family carers (PI).

Included! - Co-created Guidelines for Inclusive Digital Social Services (Collaborator).

Engaged and empowered? A realist review of user involvement with inclusion health populations in complex interventions in health and social care research (PI).

Peer support for forced migrants with diverse sexual orientations and gender identities/expressions: development and feasibility of a co-produced intervention addressing mental health (Collaborator).

Understanding the relationships connecting everyday life, care, and the physical environment in nursing homes – a new collaborative framework (Collaborator).

The role of eHealth and potential paths out of homelessness: narratives of women with experiences of homelessness in the UK (PI).

Media

A short educational film about inclusive communities, based on research by Dr Anna Brorsson and me. The film was created in collaboration with a filmmaker (Brave Teddy Oy), and filmed on location in Stockholm with ICA supermarkets, Jernhusen’s Central Station in Stockholm, and Stockholm’s metro service (MTR): Marie’s Journey on Vimeo