Dr Sowbhagya Micheal

Position

Lecturer in Medical Education and Convenor of the Medicine in Context program, School of Medicine

Biography

Dr Micheal started her career working with people living with HIV/AIDS across thirteen states in India, with specific focus on community empowerment, human rights and access to healthcare.  This work cemented her interests in community participation and public health, which became the focus of her doctoral research on the influence of civil society on HIV policymaking, at the University of New South Wales.  During her PhD studies, Sowbhagya engaged in part-time individual and small group teaching, particularly in the Faculty of Medicine, which ignited an interest in medical education. She combines her expertise in community health and teaching, focusing on community-engaged medical education by translating community realities and contexts into medical education.

Dr Micheal joined the WSU School of Medicine in 2014 as a sessional academic and is currently a Lecturer with the Medical Education and Convenor of the community-engaged Medicine in Context program. She develops community-engaged teaching innovations and teaches across the first three years of the five-year medical curriculum. Her research focuses on teaching scholarship, community engagement in academia, impact of community engagement, improving sexual and reproductive health for young people, lived experiences of underserved communities and improving access to health care. She translates these research insights into her teaching and community engagement. In addition to teaching and research, Dr Micheal initiates partnerships and maintains 100+ partnerships between the School of Medicine and community-health related organisations, particularly in Greater Western Sydney.

Research Interests

• Community engaged medical education
• Impact of community engagement
• Culturally and linguistically diverse communities
• Social determinants of health
• Sexuality and gender
• Migrant health
• Teaching innovations
• Qualitative methodologies

Memberships

• Public Health Association Australia
• Western Sydney Ally Network
• Badugulang Centre for Teaching and Learning Excellence
• Sexualities and Gender Research
• We-CALD, WSU Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Staff Collective

Qualifications & Recognition

• Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President Excellence in Teaching - Partnerships 2020
• Fellowship - Advance HE 2020
• PhD University of New South Wales
• MPH University of New South Wales
• MA Tata Institute of Social Sciences

Research & Publications

• For a complete list of my publications please see my publications page (opens in a new window)
• View my ResearchGate profile (opens in a new window)

Contact Details