Olivia Grech is a Brain Research UK PhD student at the University of Birmingham studying mechanisms and new treatments for headache in raised intracranial pressure. Her project has also explored the metabolic effects of headache mechanisms in animal models in addition to analysing metabolic profile of patients with disorders of headache (Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension). She has an MRes in Biomedical Science and Translational Medicine from the University of Liverpool and a BSc in Biomedical Sciences from the University of York.
Olivia has always had a flair for writing and enjoys reviewing current literature on neuroscience, metabolism, and development of new innovative technologies. During her doctoral training she has published multiple articles in peer-reviewed journals on Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension, four of which is she the first author of.
Olivia has presented her research nationally and internationally at conferences including the North American Neuro-Ophthalmology Society, the International Headache Congress, Headache Co-operative of the Pacific and the Aerospace Medical Association. She has also won prizes including the best basic science presentation at the International Headache Congress 2021 and the best poster at the European Neuro-ophthalmology Society meeting 2022.
In addition to conference awards Olivia has been awarded with travel grants to attend meetings and achieved a small project grant fund of £10,000 from the The Midland Neuroscience Teaching and Research Fund. She also enjoys medical illustration and graphics and is involved in the production of scientific figures and infographics for research. In 2020 she won the Honorable mention prize for Biorender’s Graphical Abstract Competition.
In addition to her work as a researcher, Olivia has been involved in a variety of roles in the neuroscience research community. She is a social media team member for the European Headache Federation, in which she creates content and disseminates new headache research for layperson audiences. Additionally, she is an early career research representative and social media member for the Midland Neuroscience Teaching and Research Fund, raising awareness of the charity’s research.