Dr Ann-Marie Hughes is an Associate Professor within the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southampton. Ann-Marie’s research streams are centred on her understanding of movement assessment and user needs for innovative flexible rehabilitation technologies as well as their wider ethical, legal and societal implications, focussing on trust. She has used these to lead engineering design and evaluation of technologies, for assessment and development of international guidelines, as well as regularly contributing to the Royal College of Physicians UK Stroke Guidelines. These skills have also driven the design of multidisciplinary, research-led education and stakeholder engagement.
Her research has evolved from manual to instrumented movement assessment and the development, application and user perspectives of novel technologies primarily to improve arm and trunk movement for people with mainly neurological conditions such as stroke and multiple sclerosis. These technologies have included Electrical Stimulation (ES), Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation (NIBS), Wearable and Rehabilitation Robotics, Telerehabilitation, Constraint Induced Movement Therapy (CIMT), and Movement Sensors.
Currently, her work is increasingly focussed on flexible technologies and the use of autonomous systems within healthcare which can be used by patients both in clinics and in the home environments.
Her international transdisciplinary work has been facilitated by her diverse background with a PhD in Electronics and Electrical Engineering, an MSc in Information Systems, and a BSc and clinical experience in Physiotherapy (specialising in neurology) which have given her a unique perspective. She is frequently invited to give international guest lectures, keynotes and to join research collaborations. Previously she led a European grant to develop an MSc in Advanced Rehabilitation Technologies with 10 European Universities across Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, The Netherlands, Rumania, Scotland and Switzerland. The programme is now being run in Paris and Milan.
Prizes
2015 Mechatronics Best Paper Prize
2013 IEEE Control Systems Magazine Outstanding Paper Award
2009 Prize for best paper at the International Rehabilitation Robotics Conference (ICORR) Kyoto, Japan