Currently a visiting researcher in Barcelona, dr. Ana Jelnikar gave a research seminar as part of the Horizon Europe Project “PoPMeD-SuSDeV” 

Entitled Medical Mission Sisters: From Pioneering Medical Professionalism to Being a “Healing Presence” around the World, her presentation focused on the largely overlooked contribution of two women doctors, Agnes McLaren and Anna Dengel, in professionalising the healing ministry of the Catholic Church. Drawing on archival sources and adopting a microhistory approach that pays attention to “hidden transcripts,” she zoomed in on the years leading up to the Society’s foundation and its early days in India, while highlighting the many changes the Society underwent down to the present. The discussion revolved around issues of femaly agency vis-à-vis competing hierarchies, the changing understanding of health and healing in a fraught cross-cultural environment, and the importance of combined qualitative and quantitative research for understanding complex social phenomena.   

Her presentation was followed by a fruitful discussion with attendees, comprising of PhD students, members of the project team and members of staff of the School of Management, providing some critical insights as to her future work and research.