After studying Biomedical Sciences at Newcastle University, Jay joined the HRC team as a Neuroscience MRes student in 2022. Her research focused on identifying unmet needs in diagnosing depression in the NHS. Jay is currently continuing this work as a PhD project. During these studies she is mapping the patient pathway for depression diagnosis. This involves completing thematic analysis of interviews to understand GP, psychiatrist and patient perspectives on the challenges in diagnosing depression. The project also includes a scoping review of the diagnostic accuracy of rating scales for depression. Jay is identifying whether, and where, these could be used more effectively in the current pathway.

During this time, she also completed a Master’s conversion degree in Psychology, developing her skills in qualitative methods and furthering her understanding of psychiatric disorders.

As of August 2025, she has been working as a Mixed Methods Technical Analyst for the HRC team. This is drawing on her scientific knowledge from her undergraduate degree to implement qualitative methods and care pathway analysis over a range of projects, supporting evidence generation for novel diagnostics.