Jo Middleton

(MENAFN- The Conversation)

• Research Fellow in Public Health, Brighton and Sussex Medical School

Profile Articles Activity

Dr Jo Middleton FRGS MRSB is based at Brighton and Sussex Medical School and the School of Life Sciences, and is Planetary Health Theme Lead at Sussex Sustainability Research Programme. Presently, they are improving scabies outbreak control in Britain and East Africa, and integrating medicine and conservation in Papua New Guinea. More broadly, their research and teaching mainly concerns medical parasitology, neglected tropical diseases, and planetary health (safeguarding human health & its underpinning natural systems).

Before joining the University as a researcher in 2014, they worked in emergency care and taught courses for Brighton & Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust staff and those travelling to remote areas. For their active interest in expedition health and remote care, and related experience in jungles and deserts, they were honoured to be elected Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (FRGS) in 2025.

Jo has a long term commitment to conservation, particularly forest preservation and indigenous health in Oceania (>25 years). Thus, in addition to their university work they chair the not-for-profit WildHealth C.I.C., which creates and supports win-win interventions for human health and biodiversity. In addition to teaching medical students, they are also Module Convenor for 'Advanced Topics in Conservation' at University of Sussex.

Experience

• –present Senior Research Fellow, University of Sussex
• –present Chair, Wildhealth C.I.C.
• –present Visiting Professor of Public Health, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University

Education

• Brighton and Sussex Medical School, PhD By Publication. Thesis title - From parasites to planetary health: interdisciplinary research bridging medical acarology, public health, and conservation biology

Publications

• 2025 Loganathan, Middleton, Heath, et al. Brief interventions for travel advice., InnovAiT.
• 2025 Cooper, Middleton, Cooper. Cold-water, sulphur, and 'the itch': James Henry's principles for conducting controlled trials (1843)., Irish J Med Sci.
• 2024 Yirgu, Middleton, Cassell, et al. Quality of life among adults with scabies: a community-based cross-sectional study in north-western Ethiopia., PLOS NTDs 18:e0012429.
• 2024 Hounsome, *Yirgu, Middleton, et al. Cost-effectiveness of mass drug administration for control of scabies in Ethiopia: a decision-analytic model., Front Health Serv 4:1279762.
• 2024 Middleton et al. Tick hazard in the South Downs National Park (UK): species, distribution, key locations for future interventions, site density, habitats., PeerJ Life Environ 12:e17483.
• 2024 Stockdale, Middleton, Aina, et al. Mobilising Papua New Guinea's conservation humanities: research landscape, capacity building needs, future directions, Conserv Soc 22:86-89.
• 2023 Middleton et al. Health service needs and perspectives of a rainforest conserving community in Papua New Guinea's Ramu lowlands: a combined clinical and rapid anthropological assessment with parallel treatment of urgent cases, BMJ Open 13:e075946.
• 2023 Richardson... Middleton. Scabies outbreak management in refugee/migrant camps across Europe 2014-17: a retrospective qualitative interview study of healthcare staff experiences and perspectives., BMJ Open 13:e075103.
• 2023 Middleton et al. [Book chapter] Scabies Management in Institutions., In: Chosidow and Fisher eds. Scabies. Vienna: Springer Nature, 433–458.
• 2023 UK Health Security Agency Scabies Guidance Working Group [inc. Middleton]. UKHSA guidance on the management of scabies cases and outbreaks in long-term care facilities and other closed settings., UKHSA
• 2023 Yirgu, Middleton, Fekadu, et al. No secondary impact of ivermectin mass drug administration for onchocerciasis elimination on the prevalence of scabies in northern-western Ethiopia, Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg 118:110–117.
• 2023 Yirgu, Middleton, Fekadu, et al. Scabies in Amhara region, Northern Ethiopia: a cross sectional study of prevalence, determinants, clinical presentation, and community knowledge, BMJ Open 13:e075038.
• 2023 Bertini, Bogen-Johnson... Middleton, et al. Care Workers and Managers' Experiences of Implementing Infection Control Guidance in an Epidemic Context: A Qualitative Study in the South East of England, during the COVID-19 Prevaccination Era., Health Soc Care Community: 4127871.
• 2022 Middleton. Can ivermectin mass drug administrations to control scabies also reduce skin and soft tissue infections? Hospitalizations and primary care presentations lower after a large-scale trial in Fiji., Lancet Reg Health – West Pac 22:100454.
• 2022 Kiss, Blyuss... Middleton, et al. How can risk of COVID-19 transmission be minimised in domiciliary care for older people: development, parameterisation and initial results of a simple mathematical model., Epidemiol Infect 150: E13.
• 2022 Middleton et al. Influenza vaccine among care home staff in England: a service evaluation., Preprint: OSF
• 2021 [Alphabetical by surname] Alvarez-Moreno, Cassell... Middleton, et al. Long-term consequences of the misuse of ivermectin data., Lancet Infect Dis 21:1624–1626.
• 2021 Middle authors alphabetical by surname] Walker, Head, Middleton, Cassell. Ivermectin in the management of a scabies outbreak in a long-term care facility., B J Dermatol.
• 2021 Middleton et al. Mapping evidence on integrated conservation and health projects worldwide., Lancet Planet 5:6
• 2021 Bertini, *Bogen-Johnston, Middleton, et al. COVID-19 management in social care in England: a systematic review of changing policies and newspaper reported staff perspectives., Preprint: medRxiv
• 2020 Middleton et al. Rationale, experience and ethical considerations underpinning integrated actions to further global goals for health and land biodiversity in Papua New Guinea., Sustain Sci 15:1653-1664.
• 2020 Middle authors alphabetical by surname] Alcamo & Thompson... Middleton, et al. Analysing Interactions among the Sustainable Development Goals: Findings and emerging issues from local and global studies., Sustain Sci 15:6.
• 2020 Middleton et al. Health service needs and perspectives of remote forest communities in Papua New Guinea: study protocol for combined clinical and rapid anthropological assessments with parallel treatment of urgent cases., BMJ Open 10: e041784
• 2019 Veidis, Myers... Clinicians for Planetary Health Working Group [inc. Middleton]. A call for clinicians to act on planetary health., Lancet 10185:2021
• 2019 Morrison, Middleton, Lanza, et al. Do we know how scabies outbreaks in residential and nursing care homes for the elderly should be managed? A systematic review of interventions using a novel approach to assess evidence quality., Epidemiol Infect 147:e250.
• 2019 Middleton et al. Ivermectin for the control of scabies outbreaks in the UK., Lancet 10214:2068-2069.
• 2019 Walker, Middleton, Cassell. Scabies outbreaks in care homes for the elderly – Authors' reply., Lancet Infect Dis 19:1.
• 2018 Kinyanjui, Middleton, Guttell, et al. Scabies in Residential Care Homes: Modelling, inference and interventions for well-connected population sub-units., PLOS Comp Biol 14:3.
• 2018 Cassell, Middleton et al. Scabies outbreaks in ten care homes for elderly people: a prospective study of clinical features, epidemiology, and treatment outcomes., Lancet Infect Dis 18:8.
• 2018 Stone, Myers... and Planetary Health Education Brainstorm Group [inc. Middleton)., Lancet Planet 2:5.
• 2018 Middleton et al. Authors reply to 'Scabies control: the forgotten role of personal hygiene'., Lancet Infect Dis 18:10.
• 2016 Lanza, Middleton, Head, et al. Can outbreak research be achieved in a population with impaired capacity? Findings from a study of a scabies outbreak in residential care., Lancet 386:S48.
• 2016 Middleton, Cooper, Rott. Can interventions that aim to decrease Lyme disease hazard at non-domestic sites be effective without negatively affecting ecosystem health? A systematic review protocol., Environ Evid 5:23.

Professional Memberships

• Fellow, Royal Geographical Society
• Member, Brighton and Sussex Medico-Chirurgical Society
• Member, Royal Society of Biology

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