Critical Care

Critical Care is the online publication of Medical Anthropology Quarterly. Critical Care provides anthropological insights about current events; creating space for public-facing writing, worldly and speculative interpretations of research, and dissemination of work to broader audiences. Critical Care combines the theoretical legacy of medical anthropology with applied, real-world engagements, providing careful responses to urgent matters demanding our attention.

Our editorial team is always looking for innovative and accessible contributions from medical anthropology and neighboring disciplines. Submissions will be reviewed by the MAQ Digital Editor and Editor, and we will work closely with authors on revisions. Multimedia or text submissions can take the form of:

  • reflections on fieldwork in progress
  • introduction of emergent methodologies or concepts
  • medical anthropological perspectives on current events
  • amplifying underrepresented voices in medical anthropology and in biomedicine/tech at large
  • reports from events, workshops, conference sessions

We also welcome online series ideas, which can resemble a journal special issue or be a collected group of submissions focused around a common theme or topic. A series can be curated by a contributor or by the digital editor.

Please contact the MAQ Digital Editor, Jessica Robbins-Panko, with submissions and ideas: jessica.robbins@wayne.edu.

Latest Posts

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New Drug Policies and Addiction Imaginaries During Russia’s War in Ukraine

Jennifer J. Carroll

November 18, 2024

For nearly three decades, Ukraine has experienced the worst HIV epidemic in Europe. People living with HIV in Ukraine make up approximately 1% of the Ukrainian population and represented nearly 10% of all new HIV cases in Europe in 2022. As I discuss in my book, Narkomania: Drugs, HIV, and… (Continue Reading)

Blog Series: Russia's War in Ukraine: Ethnographic Views of the Extraordinary

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"People say we are helping soldiers, but we are helping ourselves": Handmade Camouflage in Wartime Ukraine (A Photo Essay)

Maryna Nading

November 15, 2024

Figure 1. Volunteers pose next to a completed camouflage net at a local market. Photo Credit: Zakhyst - Volunteer Community. 2024. The weaving of camouflage nets is a cultural phenomenon that has swept Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in February 2022. Towns big and small have multiple groups who procure… (Continue Reading)

Blog Series: Russia's War in Ukraine: Ethnographic Views of the Extraordinary

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Weaving Peace, Weaving Victory: Camouflage Nets in Wartime Ukraine

Maryna Nading

November 15, 2024

This essay is about Ukrainian volunteers who create handmade camouflage nets for soldiers serving in the Ukrainian army. Their stories open new ways of thinking about care and reproduction. This kind of volunteering is a form of socially reproductive labor, and it is essential to the war relief effort. Below,… (Continue Reading)

Blog Series: Russia's War in Ukraine: Ethnographic Views of the Extraordinary

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Dislocated Biology and Curative Violence in Russia’s War on Ukraine

Sarah D. Phillips

November 15, 2024

Dmitrii was exhausted and in pain. Russia had launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine just weeks ago, on February 24, 2022, and the 55-year-old spinally injured wheelchair user knew he had to leave Kyiv. Bombs were falling on the city. He hadn’t slept in weeks, and his sore foot was… (Continue Reading)

Blog Series: Russia's War in Ukraine: Ethnographic Views of the Extraordinary

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Russia’s War in Ukraine: Ethnographic Views of the Extraordinary

Emily Channell-Justice and Jennifer J. Carroll

November 15, 2024

“Our emotions go from here to here.” Nadiia stretched her arms out as wide as she could. “And,” she said, bringing her hands back together, with an inch of space between them, “this is the space we have in which we experience those emotions.” Though this conversation took place between Emily… (Continue Reading)

Blog Series: Russia's War in Ukraine: Ethnographic Views of the Extraordinary

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Running Late for Normality at Six Months Old

Xisai Song

July 1, 2024

At my son Qiqi’s six-month wellness checkup in April 2024, his pediatrician noticed head shape deformity and referred us to a clinic specializing in helmet therapy for babies in Austin, Texas. The pediatrician also suggested that we visit the helmet clinic soon because the effectiveness of helmets decreases after six… (Continue Reading)