The Vice Lord-Lieutenant of Bedfordshire

Mr Gurch Randhawa DL

Professor Gurch Randhawa is a Professor of Diversity in Public Health and Director of the Institute for Health and Wellbeing Research at the University of Bedfordshire, with an international track-record, spanning over 30 years, of utilising inter-faith and inter-cultural approaches in the development of patient-centred care pathways across the life-course – ranging from ranging from COVID-19 & public engagement, consanguinity, maternal health, child health, diabetes, kidney disease, transplantation, mental health, tele-health, social prescription, cancer, organ donation, and end-of-life care amongst diverse communities - working in international settings such as European Union, World Health Organisation, Qatar, Nigeria, India, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Canada.

Gurch leads an international Research Centre that has carried out extensive research, in a range of countries, examining variation in donation rates among different ethnic and faith communities. He served on the Prime Minister’s Organ Donation Taskforce 2007-2009. In 2013, he was commissioned by NHS Blood & Transplant to develop the Faith Engagement & Organ Donation Action Plan which was published in partnership with all faith leaders across the UK. Gurch has co-edited the influential international book - Public Engagement in organ donation and transplantation – which serves as a blueprint for organ donation and public engagement across the world. His book ‘Organ donation in Islam: the interplay of jurisprudence, ethics, and society’ was published in 2023 to support dialogue among the Muslim communities across the world. Gurch is Expert Advisor to the All Party Parliamentary Group on Ethnicity, Transplantation, and Transfusion. Gurch is currently working with the Vatican’s Pontifical Academy for Life on the DELIVER – Donation Ethnicity Liberation Inclusion Pontifical Academy for Life – Vatican-State led – Engagement of Religious Communities Project.

Gurch aims to ensure his research informs policy and practice too, and also currently serves as a Non Executive Director at Central East NHS Integrated Care Board; and Forestry England Board respectively.

Gurch also serves as an Ambassador at Keech Hospice Care; Patron of Bedfordshire Rural Communities Charity; a Volunteer at Luton Sikh Soup Kitchen.