Catherine Smith

Medical anthropology; global health; emotion, affect and embodiment; anthropology of the state; development studies; Indonesian studies

I'm an anthropologist and global health researcher. I have worked in Indonesia for many years, and have an ongoing interest in transnational health issues within the Asia Pacific region.

I am currently a research fellow in the Department of Anthropology at Macquarie University where I hold a grant from the Australian Research Council (a DECRA - Discovery Early Career Researchers Award), to examine midwifery and maternal health in the Special Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

Based on the life histories of midwives and other qualitative methods, this project examines the local, national and global socio-political processes that have influenced relationships of trust between midwives, communities and the broader healthcare system. Through this I will contribute to three key bodies of knowledge: 1) qualitative research with health practitioners working in challenging environments; 2) emotion, embodiment and the culture of medicine; 3) social inequality and health justice.

I have previously carried out a major project looking at the globalisation of post-traumatic stress disorder, with a particular focus on trauma, resilience and social recovery in the Indonesian province of Aceh. I have also carried out a body of applied research and consultancies examining malaria elimination, population mobility and health inequalities in the Asia Pacific.

In addition to research and teaching at universities in Australia, Netherlands and Singapore, I have carried out technical consultancies for global health agencies on topics related to global health and development in the Asia Pacific region.

Key areas of expertise:

- medical anthropology, political anthropology, global health

- health and social inequality; health justice

- qualitative research with health practitioners and healthcare systems

- the role of emotion and affect in health encounters and in global health and development

- the globalisation and localisation of medical norms, knowledge and practice

- midwifery, maternal and infant health, sexual and reproductive health, global mental health, malaria

- Indonesia, transnational health issues in the Asia Pacific

I am available to supervise MRes and PhD students on topics related to:

- critical medical anthropology; global health research; applied medical anthropology; the anthropology of violence and social recovery; development studies; gender and globalisation; Indonesian studies.