60 Seconds with Adelina Comas

Had there been a pandemic like COVID when I started at LSE over 20 years ago, I’m not sure how we could have mobilised knowledge and experiences, or even continued working.

 

In November 2020, Adelina Comas, Assistant Professorial Research Fellow at the Care Policy and Evaluation Centre, Department of Health Policy, shared her thoughts on her time at LSE.

Adelina Coma
Adelina Comas

How long have you worked at LSE and how did you come to work at the university? 

I first arrived in 1995, as part of a European project that involved an exchange of early career researchers for one year, and I did my best to stay. I have now worked at LSE for over 20 years, although some of those were very part time due to life complications and spells as a consultant for international organisations.  

What areas have you worked in? 

I have mostly worked on how to respond to the growing numbers of living with dementia and other conditions that require care and support from others, in the UK and worldwide. I have worked on making projections of future need for care and costs and, more recently, on research that tries to bridge the gulf between the aspirations for better care and the well-recognised shortcomings of the long-term care systems in most countries. Right now, I co-lead an international project to improve dementia care in 7 middle income countries. 

Since March I have been curating LTCcovid.org, a website that has been sharing resources and facilitating collaboration to gather international evidence on the impact of the pandemic on people who use and provide long-term care, as well as gathering information about policy responses relevant to long-term care. 

What’s the best part of your job/time at LSE? 

Working with extraordinary colleagues and feeling that sometimes our work can make a difference. During the first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic many of us worked around the clock to try to use the knowledge and networks we had to shine a light, particularly, on what was happening in care homes. This happened without funding, and on top of a busy time restructuring fieldwork in our existing projects and home-life challenges. The combination of working closely (even if remotely) with other colleagues that were just as determined to make a difference, and the feeling that we were achieving something useful together really helped me get through what, otherwise, would have been very difficult months, I am very grateful for that. 

Tell us about a book you can't put down

My family and other animals, by Gerald Durrell. I first read it as a teenager and it’s a book that is impossible to re-read without laughing every time.  

What have been the biggest changes you’ve seen? 

Having technology that enables us to work closely with colleagues all over the world… And from home when needed! Had there been a pandemic like COVID-19 when I started at LSE over 20 years ago, I’m not sure how we could have mobilised knowledge and experiences, or even continued working. As much as I miss meeting face-to-face with colleagues, I am really amazed by what we have been able to do online. 

What’s your fondest memory of working at LSE?  

I still remember looking at the public lectures programme on the first week when I arrived at LSE and the sense of wonder that I’d be able to listen to all those amazing people. It’s an extraordinary place to work and study. 

What excites you about the future of LSE? 

Having spent most of my career thinking about what would happen in the next decades in relation to ageing and how to improve on the current situation, I am very excited by the LSE’s ambition to shape the world as part of the LSE 2030 strategy. LSE is in a great position to influence change and I am excited by the prospect of building links with other groups at LSE that work on similar themes. 

What makes you feel part of LSE? 

As a researcher, it is sitting in a room listening to a colleague discuss new approaches to solve a problem and watching how others generously contribute their ideas. I very much associate LSE with the shared excitement for research that can make a difference.