Ruth De Souza is a skilled facilitator, writer, podcaster, researcher, and consultant. Ruth is also an Honorary Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Health and Environmental Sciences- Te Ara Hauora A Pūtaiao at Auckland University of Technology.
Services
Research and Writing
Passionate about addressing inequities, with theoretical interests in feminist theory, postcolonial theory and critical qualitative research methodologies.
Media Presenter
Media expert on health inequities in refugee and migrant communities; birthing and mental health.
Consulting
Available for engagement in projects including: facilitation, consultation, strategic planning, stakeholder engagement organisational development, research, training and project management.
Keynote Speaker
An experienced speaker, presenter, MC and facilitator with specific professional expertise in cultural safety, maternity, cultural issues in health, migration and health, social inclusion, self-care, mental health and more.
Podcast
Conversations with changemakers about birth, racism, and cultural safety.
Recent Episode
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Series 4 Episode 8: Favorite Iradukunda on decolonisation, justice and inclusion
A native of Rwanda currently based in Amherst, Massachusetts, Dr. Favorite Iradukunda is a nurse scholar dedicated to advancing the holistic well-being of African-diasporic women, families, and communities. Her research addresses maternal health disparities through community-centered and culturally congruent interventions. She is an advocate for transforming health through anti-colonial knowledge co-creation processes and the inclusion…
Research
I am a nurse, academic and community-engaged researcher in gender, race, health and digital technologies. Based on the lands of the Kulin Nation in Victoria, Australia, my ancestral heritage is in Goa, India but I have had the privilege of living and working in Tanzania, Kenya, Aotearoa New Zealand, The Kingdom of Tonga, England and Switzerland. My lived experiences in these places has profoundly shaped my commitment to care, justice and equity. I am committed to collaborative, creative and participatory approaches to research and design with the aim of informing policies and services that can serve communities better. I write, teach, and speak about cultural safety, birthing, racism and healthcare.
Research Areas (thanks for your patience, I am revamping the website, so content will be appearing slowly)
Arts and Health Cultural safety Data/Digital health Mental health Migrant health
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Utilising patient-generated health data (PGHD) in clinical practice
I have had a long-standing interest in how the rapidly expanding field of consumer health technologies can enhance health literacy and enhance participation. However, there is a lag between the uptake of such devices and the preparedness of both health professionals and healthcare systems to integrate such useful but also voluminous data. For the last…
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Alternatives to Emergency departments
For many years in both England and Auckland, New Zealand. I worked in a psychiatric liason role meaning that I would be called to assess people who presented with a mental health crisis at the emergency department. I am interested in pathways to and through care. It was a privilege to co-supervise Hons student Jessica…
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QUT: Co-design of a future health education and research precinct
In 2020 I was part of a design team including Leah Heiss, Olivia Hamilton, Marius Foley, and Olga Kokshagina, engaged by two architectural firms, to develop and deliver an online co-design process to understand the research, teaching and engagement opportunities afforded by a new health precinct. Our engagement as part of the generative stages of…
Writing + News
Reviews, notes and reflections, focussing on race, health, and current projects.
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Why don’t we treat menopause the way we treat birth?
I have spent most of my career working with birthing people. I will declare at the outset that I am interested in a critical, holistic, lifespan approach to reproductive and sexual health, rather than a biologically deterministic view. Just as the transition into birthing can be fraught, biologically and socially (when the birth plan gets…
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Why write/read book chapters? Community, connection, and creativity.
“…the neo-liberal academy has compelled me to compete and compare, to work on my own, to overwork, and to count narrowly. At various times, neoliberal ideologies have crept into my mind/writing/body, breaking me down. The academy’s “finite games” of winners and losers, the demands to prove I am a “credible academic”, the narrow counting and…
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Can open data disrupt power relations in health and enhance consumer participation?
VALA Libraries, Technology and the Future invited my fabulous colleague from Melbourne University Fiona Tweedie and I to participate in a webinar discussion as part of Open Access Week. The webinar was hosted by VALA President, Katie Haden. VALA are an independent Australian based not-for-profit organisation that aim to promote the use and understanding of information…
About Ruth De Souza
Ruth De Souza is a nurse, academic and community engaged researcher in gender, race, health and digital technologies.
Ruth is a writer, podcaster, researcher, and consultant. Ruth co-teaches- Creative Practice in Place: Working on unceded lands with Jody Haines (Palawa/Tommeginne) and Alan Hill, at RMIT University. She is also an Honorary Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Health and Environmental Sciences- Te Ara Hauora A Pūtaiao at Auckland University of Technology.