Astrid Blystad

Homepage: https://www.uib.no/rg/globhealth

Title: Professor

Phone: +47 55 58 61 61

E-mail: Astrid.Blystad@igs.uib.no

Visiting address: At ISF: Kalfarveien 31 / At CIH: OVerlege Danielsens Hus, Årstadvn. 21

Leader of the research group “Global health: ethics, economics and culture” based at the Faculty of Medicine, UoB.

Blystad is professor in medical anthropology at the University of Bergen (UoB), Norway, with particular research interest in maternal health with an empirical focus on fertility, infertility, mother to child transmission of HIV, obstetric fistula, female genital cutting, incontinence and prolapse.

Her work springs out of more than 20 years of research in East Africa. Methodologically the research is based in the ethnographic tradition, more recently in combination with other qualitative methods as well as in combination with quantitative methods in mixed methods designs.

Theoretical interests are located within socio-cultural theory, critical theory, gender theory, phenomenology and institutional ethnography. She is principle investigator of several externally funded multidisciplinary research projects.

PhD, RN

Publications in Cristin

Publications in PubMed

Present teaching at the following departments/centres at UoB:
- Department of Public Health and Primary Health Care (ISF), Faculty of Medicine
- Centre for International Health (CIH), Faculty of Medicine
- Department of Education and Health (IUH), Faculty of Psychology

Present MA courses taught
- ‘Health sciences in an anthropological perspective’ (Health sciences, ISF, Spring)
- ‘Culture and health’ (Health Sciences, CIH, Autumn)
-  The theory of health and illness (Health Sciences, ISF, Fall)
- ‘Qualitative methods’ (CIH, Autumn)
- ‘Focusing the Body in the Social Sciences’ (MA in Gender and Development, Fall)

Present Doctoral courses
- Qualitative methods, Faculty of Medicine and Odontology, UoB
- The global HIV epidemic and challenges to improve prevention, support and care (CIH, Spring)
- The cultural dimension of health and illness (ISF, Spring)

Supervision:
6 PhDs and 32 MA completed (4 PhDs as co-supervisor)

8 PhD students (4 as co-supervisor) and 5 MAs under current supervision

Strengthening human resources for health, Tanzania. NRC grant: 2006-2011, PI: Blystad with CMI and BUC.

Gender, generation and social mobilisation: Challenges of reproductive health and rights among vulnerable groups in Sudan, Tanzania and Ethiopia. NUFU grant: 2007-2012, PI: Blystad

Gender in poverty reduction. NRC grant: 2009-2012, PI: Haldis Haukanes, Gender and development, UoB, Blystad main collaborating partner.

Incontinence and symptomatic pelvic organ prolapse in Ethiopia. Initiated in 2010, to apply for main funding 2011. Helse Vest grant: 2010, PI: Guri Rørtveit, Blystad main collaborating partner.

‘REACT: Health related priority setting, Tanzania. EU grant: 2005-2010, Blystad responsible for one work-package.

Searching for effective HIV-prevention and care in sub-Saharan Africa: focusing on local contexts. NRC grant: 2004-2008 w/extension 2008-10, PI: Fylkesnes. Blystad responsible for one work package.

Gender, generation and communication in times of AIDS: The potential of ’modern’ and ’traditional’ institutions. NUFU grant: 2006-2007, PI: Blystad