Dr Ana Lucia Borges da Costa

Ana qualified as an Occupational Therapist in 1988 in São Paulo, Brazil, where she is originally from. She worked for various mental health services in São Paulo and, also, as a lecturer in occupational therapy at two renowned universities there until 2001, when she moved to England.

In the UK, she has worked as an Occupational Therapist for various mental health services, including inpatient and community services. Ana completed her PhD in 2014, investigating circle dance as a medium for promoting occupational well-being. Ana has extensively researched the value of circle dance to wellbeing and has published widely on the subject. Her research interests are occupational therapy in mental health, dance (in particular circle dance), health and well-being, occupational science and qualitative research.

Ana has been working in Higher Education in the UK since 2015. Initially, she worked as a lecturer in health at the University of Bolton. From 2017 to 2019, Ana worked at the University of Cumbria as a lecturer in occupational therapy. She joined the University of Central Lancashire in 2020 working as a lecturer in occupational therapy teaching on the BSc (Hons) and MSc (pre-reg) Occupational Therapy programmes.