Rate My Professor Karen McDonald Smith

Karen McDonald Smith is a lecturer in the School of Nursing and Midwifery at Griffith University, part of Griffith Health, located at the Logan Campus in Academic 1 (L05) room 3.14. She specializes in midwifery education, contributing to the Bachelor of Midwifery program through innovative teaching and learning strategies that prepare undergraduate students for clinical practice. Her work emphasizes clinical skill development, student engagement, and adapting education to challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic. McDonald Smith holds concurrent clinical roles, including assistant director of nursing midwifery education at Darling Downs Hospital and Health Service, where she was appointed as the region's first midwife guide to support birthing experiences.

McDonald Smith's research focuses on enhancing midwifery students' competence and confidence via immersive simulation and online methodologies. She co-authored 'Facilitating midwifery clinical skill development online: A case study' (2020, Australian Journal of Clinical Education) with Amanda G. Carter and Jennifer Eustace, detailing the rapid shift of laboratory sessions to Blackboard using Microsoft Teams and Collaborate Ultra. Students practiced shoulder dystocia management and postpartum blood loss estimation with household items, receiving positive feedback for increased engagement, fun, and clinical applicability. In 'A teddy and a cardboard box: Developing midwifery skills during COVID-19 utilising innovative online learning activities' (2022, Women and Birth), she collaborated on strategies employing peer-to-peer learning, online tools, and everyday objects like cereal boxes and teddies, which boosted learner agency and optimized subsequent face-to-face simulations. Additional publications include 'How do consumers' stories influence Bachelor of Midwifery students’ understanding of respectful maternity care?' (2023), 'Listening to women' (2023), 'Use of galactagogues among breastmilk expressing women in Australia' (2023), and 'Midwifery@Griffith Meta-Values in Action' (2024). She facilitates hands-on workshops, such as escape room simulations, and received the Pro Vice Chancellor Staff Excellence Award for Sustainability, along with recognition at the 2024 ACM Midwifery Awards.