Research with purpose, across work, health, suicide prevention and the institutions that shape people’s lives.
I am a researcher and suicidologist at the University of Glasgow. I combine applied public-health research, evidence synthesis, mixed methods, historical analysis and meaningful involvement from people with lived experience.
Explore the research
Suicide prevention and response
SOLVE, nurse suicide, workplace response and practical ways to recognise and answer distress.
Work and health
Job retention, older workers, Long COVID, workplace mental health and healthy working lives.
Military and veteran mental health
Current evidence review, historical research and Silent Voices, a book on a century of British military suicide.
Current research programmes
SOLVE
Developing and feasibility-testing a brief, training-independent resource for non-clinical responses to disclosures of suicidal distress in Scottish workplaces and communities.
RESUME
REsearch into Scottish nursing SUicide and Mental health Experiences. Supported by a Medical Research Foundation Mid-Career Fellowship beginning in October 2026, the programme combines official records, an anonymous survey and oral histories.
Veteran Mental Health Evidence Review
A commissioned NIHR and Ministry of Defence mixed-methods evidence review examining modifiable factors that support good mental health and wellbeing among serving personnel, reservists and veterans.
POWER and RETAIN
Research on involuntary job loss, work disengagement and retention among older workers, including evidence synthesis, predictive modelling, data mapping and PPIE.
Long COVID and work
A mixed-methods programme examining productivity, sickness absence, return to work, organisational support and the lived experience of working with Long COVID.
Working for a Healthy Economy
An evaluation of employment and health support across North, East and South Ayrshire, working with clients, staff and referrers to understand how the service operates and where it can be strengthened.
Related and developing work
Silent Voices
A book in progress examining a long century of British military suicide, from 1900 to 2020.
Dying Laughing
Research exploring comedy, difficult conversations and suicide prevention.
B12 Work Functionality
Evidence synthesis examining work-function measures and their use.
Trusted AI for evidence synthesis
Transparent, review-specific AI workflows, including the development and evaluation of risk-of-bias assessment.
Historical Research Archive
Earlier projects on military medicine, suicide, public health, power, food, religion and the treatment of people within institutions remain available as a curated archive.
Collaboration
I welcome collaboration with researchers, practitioners, employers, occupational-health teams, charities, policymakers and people with lived experience. If a project overlaps with work, mental health, suicide prevention, evidence synthesis or institutional history, get in touch.
Dr Simon Harold Walker 