Role
Dr Lucian Milasan is a Senior Lecturer in Mental Health Nursing within the School of Social Sciences (Institute of Health and Allied Professions). Lucian is a registered Mental Health Social Worker with more than fifteen years experience in delivering mental healthcare services in various therapeutic, advisory, and managerial roles. Lucian is also an active researcher drawing on qualitative (phenomenological), participatory (co-production), and visual (arts-based and photographic) methodologies to explore mental health phenomena. His main area of research is lived experiences of mental distress, resilience, and recovery within multi-disciplinary contexts at the intersection with culture, technology, and the environment. Lucian is a member of the British Academy Early Career Researcher Network and holds a MSc degree in Mental Health Practice and PhD in Mental Health from Lancaster University (2020).
Career overview
- 2010 – 2019: Student Mental Health Adviser (Nottingham Trent University)
- 2019 – 2022: Lecturer in Mental Health Nursing (De Montfort University)
- 2022 – present: Lecturer in Mental Health Nursing (Nottingham Trent University)
Research areas
Lived experiences of mental distress
Mental health recovery
Mental health and culture
Qualitative research (phenomenology)
Visual research (arts-based, photo-elicitation, and photovoice)
Participatory action research (co-production)
External activity
- 2022 – present: External examiner at Robert Gordon University (PG Cert Therapeutic Photography)
- Member of the Recovery Research Network (RRN)
- Member of the Student Mental Health Research Network (SMaRteN)
- Member of the British Academy Early Career Researcher Network
Publications
Milasan, L.H., 2024. Unveiling the transformative potential of AI-generated imagery in enriching mental health research. Qualitative Health Research [epub], 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1177/10497323241274767
Milasan, L.H., Farr, A., Turnbull, I., Scott-Purdy, D., 2024. Behind the creative canvas: An innovative trauma-informed art-based educational approach using an immersive learning pedagogy. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 33(2), 431-441. https://doi.org/10.1111/inm.13250
Milasan, L.H., 2024. "Taking pictures is like treasure hunting": Exploring the therapeutic value of photography as a qualitative research method. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 23, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069241236219
Milasan, L.H., 2023. “Mending fractured personalities”: A photography-based cultural study of recovery from mental distress in Romania. Transcultural Psychiatry, 60(2), 226-243. https://doi.org/10.1177/13634615221119373
Milasan, L.H., 2022. Photo-elicitation: Unleashing imagery in healthcare research. In Hinsliff-Smith, K., McGarry, J., Ali, P. (Eds). Arts based health care research: A multidisciplinary perspective (pp. 51-67). New York: Springer. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-94423-0_5
Milasan, L.H., & Griffin, E., 2021. Student mental wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic: a UK-based mixed-methods study. 10th European Conference on Mental Health [online], Sep 29 - Oct 01, 2021.
Milasan, L.H., & Knight, C.A., 2021. Artificial Intelligence in Mental Health Nursing: A Systematic Review [protocol]. PROSPERO CRD42021234843. https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42021234843
Milasan, L.H., Bingley, A.F., & Fisher, N.R., 2020. The big picture of recovery: a systematic review on the evidence of photography-based methods in researching recovery from mental distress. Arts Health, 1-21. doi: 10.1080/17533015.2020.1855453 (Epub ahead of print) https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33252304/
Milasan, L.H., 2020. Snapshots of recovery: A photographic exploration of experiences and meanings of recovery in Romanian mental health service users. 9th European Conference on Mental Health (online), September 30 – October 2, 2020.
Raghavan, R., Wilson, A., Raghavan, S, & Milasan, L.H., 2020. Gaps in Access and Utilisation of Mental Health and Dementia Services by Black Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) Communities in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland. Research project commissioned by NHS England (East Midlands). Mary Seacole Research Centre, De Montfort University.