Kate Domett

As a bioarchaeologist and anatomist, I research the health of past communities using human skeletal remains. I use the latest medical literature to diagnose diseases in bone, such as osteoarthritis, trauma, leprosy, and tuberculosis. This biomedical profile is interpreted through a biocultural approach, using archaeological evidence and is particularly focused on the prehistoric Southeast Asian people with their distinctive rice-based diet, tropical environment, climate, and their changes over time. The nexus of health, environment, and society, seen through a lens of climate change and conflict, is a key overarching theme of all my research.

I have extensive research project management experience and substantial long-term collaborations across Australia, Southeast Asia, and New Zealand. I have worked with archaeologists and other specialists in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Myanmar. My research students benefit from these collaborations, enabling them to participate in archaeological excavations and the hands-on analysis of human skeletal remains. I see capacity building of the next generation of ethical and respectful bioarchaeologists as one of my key roles. I encourage my students to to co-publish and present at conferences, such as ASHB, where they often win awards. My strong collaborations with archaeologists in the College of Arts, Society and Education (CASE) and the TARL group (Tropical Archaeology Research Laboratory) here at JCU allow for innovative crossovers between STEM and the Humanities.

As the Lead Academic, Anatomy and Pathology, in the College of Medicine and Dentistry, I oversee the teaching of these subjects across multiple colleges, into many courses including medicine, physiotherapy, pharmacy, and biomedical sciences among others. I am also the Queensland Health Anatomical Licensee (the custodian) for JCU to oversee the ethical and legal management of our two Anatomy Laboratories (Townsville and Cairns). We have a Human Bequest Program where people in the community can donate their bodies to JCU for teaching and research. Learning anatomy from our donors is a key example of experiential learning in an enriched learning environment – our students always highly value this part of their course. Have a look at our Facebook page to see what our students and staff are doing.

If you want to read how my career developed from a Bachelor of Science degree 30 years ago have a look here.

My research interests are across a range of themes, predominantly centred around establishing a baseline for biomedical history across the Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age in Southeast Asia. Two such themes are highlighted here. These and many other studies can be found in my publication links. (1) Evolution of Community Health alongside the Intensification of Rice Agriculture in prehistoric Southeast Asia. This includes paleopathological investigations focusing on single individuals (an osteobiography), looking at particular diseases such as osteoarthritis or an infectious disease. It also includes detailed investigations of overall health in a particular community and then synthesizing this information across time periods and geographical regions. For example: "The impact of CLUBFOOT: A holistic, paleopathological case study from Bronze Age Thailand", “Interpreting OSTEOARTHRITIS in bioarchaeology: Highlighting the importance of a clinical approach through case studies from prehistoric Thailand”, “DENTAL HEALTH in Iron Age Cambodia: temporal variations with rice agriculture”, “POPULATION HEALTH from the Bronze to the Iron Age in the Mun River Valley, Northeast Thailand”, “Forager and farmer evolutionary adaptations to MALARIA evidenced by 7000 years of thalassemia in Southeast Asia”. (2) Conflict and Trauma leading up to the development of state society and the Angkorian civilisation. For example: "Bioarchaeological Evidence of CONFLICT in Iron Age, Northwest Cambodia", "Investigating the risk of VIOLENCE during the Neolithic to the Late Iron Age in northeast Thailand", "Domestication and LARGE ANIMAL INTERACTIONS: Skeletal trauma in northern Vietnam during the hunter-gatherer Da But period", "A bioarchaeological study of TRAUMA at late Iron Age to protohistoric Non Ban Jak, Northeast Thailand"

JCU places high priority on creating and delivering Transformative Education through providing enriching student experiences targeting intellectual curiosity and lifelong learning. My extensive undergraduate teaching experience, primarily in the anatomy and histology of the musculoskeletal system, is constantly evolving to ensure students are engaged and see the relevance of their learning to their chosen pathway. I provide this with a mix of short learning outcome videos to cover core concepts, clinically relevant case studies to contextualise and apply anatomical knowledge, and face-to-face teaching in the classroom and Anatomy and Histology laboratories. Providing a blended learning experience caters for the diverse ways in which students learn. The CMD Anatomy and Pathology team, which I lead, are actively engaged in teaching and learning research and we are regularly awarded internal and external teaching and learning grants and have well established networks with ANZACA, the Australia and New Zealand Association of Clinical Anatomists.