Kristina Smith is in her fourth year of doctoral studies in the Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education and is completing a joint degree with the Joint Centre for Bioethics at the University of Toronto. Kristina’s research focus pertains to the dimensions of human pain, suffering, illness, pediatric care, bioethics and narrative ethnography.

Her doctoral work focuses on exploring how waiting for a transplant is socially experienced as a form of suffering for paediatric transplant candidates, families, and healthcare providers in the home.

VHA Research Priority: Children with Complex Medical Needs