In 2019 Tessa Oomen already started working at ESHCC as a researcher, but exactly a year later she transitioned to a PhD position. Her research focuses on how digitalisation and the current push to improve cybersecurity in healthcare affects cybersecurity communication practices.
Tessa did not take - what can be considered - the traditional route to academia. She started a Bachelor’s programme of Forensic Laboratory Science, but didn’t complete the programme. While the content was tremendously interesting, she missed a social component in her studies. After a year abroad as an au pair in the UK, she enrolled for Applied Psychology at Fontys Hogeschool in Eindhoven. After her last internship, where she researched decision-making processes of multidisciplinary crisis management teams, she found her passion for security-related research and decided to pursue a master’s degree in Crisis and Security Management at Leiden University. After completing her master’s degree, Tessa became a research and education support staff member at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs. As part of her work, she helped with the first steps of implementing the new Security Studies bachelor’s programme, she coordinated the Leiden Security and Global Affairs blog, and she worked on Horizon 2020 proposals. And this is how she met her current supervisor, dr. Jason Pridmore...
Now, Tessa works closely together with Jason on the SecureHospitals.eu project; on developing new research proposals; and since January on the TRESCA project (Trustworthy, Reliable and Engaging Scientific Communication Approaches). Furthermore, Tessa is a member of the local organising committee of the SSN 2020 conference in Rotterdam (which has now been postponed until mid-2021, due to the Coronavirus pandemic).
The topic of Tessa’s PhD research is closely related to the work for the SecureHospitals.eu project, as it aims to strengthen the understanding among healthcare and social care practitioners on best practices and strategies in relation to cybersecurity. Among the deliverables for this project are a central online information hub for cybersecurity trainers, and a Massive Open Online Course for healthcare practitioners and social services.
Besides her research, Tessa enjoys a healthy balance between being lazy (exploring Netflix, reading, and Reddit) and more active hobbies, such as playing tennis, snowboarding, and running. Tessa enjoys travelling, and she has a love-hate relationship with gardening.
For her work, Tessa has had the opportunity to visit many interesting places in Europe and to take personal time to explore them. From left to right: Prater, Vienna, Austria;Sagrada Família, Barcelona, Spain; and Rotterdam, the Netherlands (of course).
