Cynthia is a health economist and health services researcher with a 20-year experience in applied health research (AHR) working at the crossroad between various disciplines in health services research (eg, nursing, midwifery, medicine, epidemiology, sociology, and health economics).  She has a first degree as an Actuary (Mexico), an MSc in Health Economics (York), and a PhD in Health Sciences (York).

Her research focuses on the role of health technology assessment (HTA) for decision making and the contribution that quantitative and, more recently, mixed methods can make to address core challenges associated with the use of existing evidence to determine the value for money of complex interventions (eg, medical devices, self-management of chronic conditions, and global health interventions).  Most of her methodological work (innovative epidemiological study design; Bayesian methods such as value of information, elicitation, evidence synthesis, bias adjustment, and complementary use of RCT and observational data) has been embedded as part of AHR using and extending existing research methods to accommodate key characteristics of the available data and contextual factors, when necessary.

She has an established national and international reputation in HTA and medical devices evaluation. Since 2012, Cynthia has been serving on the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Medical Technologies Advisory Committee (MTAC). This group of experts is responsible for producing guidance and making recommendations on the introduction and use of medical devices in the NHS in England and Wales. She is one of only two health economists serving on this Committee.