Kristina Carlén

My background is in infectious disease care, where I worked as a nurse for many years. I have always had an interest in health promotion and preventive work. My practical work as a nurse has involved preventing, averting, and protecting against various conditions, ranging from pregnant women to elderly individuals with different infections. I am a qualified school nurse as well as a district nurse and hold a Master of Science in Nursing.

I work at the University of Skövde as a lecturer in public health science, teaching courses for nurses, school nurses, and public health practitioners. Public health science is a field that concerns people throughout life – from pregnant mothers, parents, children, and adolescents to middle-aged and elderly individuals. There are various settings from which to work, with schools being an important arena for early interventions that can affect children and young people throughout their lives. Existential health is an area that interests me, as it fundamentally affects health together with the physical, psychological, and social dimensions.

Since November 2022, I hold a PhD in Health and Care Sciences from Jönköping University. My research focuses on identifying protective factors for mental health in adolescents. One of my ongoing collaborations is the project Strengthening Young People's Mental Health in Schools, in which we, together with organisations such as Det Syns Inte, are conducting a digital, interactive intervention in the school environment. The project also includes work within the municipal responsibility for youth not in education or employment and involves accompanying research.

In addition, I am involved in several other research projects, such as the collaboration with Hjärnkoll, where we investigate how the organisation works to reduce stigma around mental health issues among young people. I also participate in the European project Body Image and Mental Health in Adolescents (BISMA), which focuses on body image, digital tools, and mental health in youth. The most recent addition to my research portfolio is SeeMee, which aims to study how the physical environment affects the development and health of premature infants in neonatal intensive care units.

I have the privilege of serving as Programme Coordinator for the Master's Programme in Public Health Science: Infection Control and Healthcare Hygiene (FHSVA), 60 credits, which was launched in the spring semester of 2017.