Dr Anjana Rai

Dr Anjana Rai is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Australian Women and Girls' Health Research Centre, School of Public Health. She currently supports the IVF support study in analysis of qualitative data, longitudinal data of patients undergoing IVF treatment in Australia, and co-development of an online intervention. Dr Rai was awarded her PhD in Public Health (2025) by Queensland University of Technology. Her doctoral research explored the nexus of adolescent marriage, agency, and nutrition, examining how early-life transitions shape diets and nutritional outcomes, using mixed-methods.

Her expertise lies in improving maternal, child, and adolescent health and nutrition, drawing on social science theories and longitudinal approaches. She also consults for International Food Policy Research Institute on prevention of childhood wasting to inform the UN JUNIPr initiative, and contributes to nutrition research in Nepal, Bangladesh, and Kenya, and child feeding, and housing and homelessness research in Australia. In her previous roles with the World Health Organisation, the World Food Programme, the World Bank, and Nepal’s Department of Health Services, she helped develop public health policies and programmes. She holds a PhD, MSc and a Bachelor in Public Health and is open to supervising future higher degree research students.

Research interests: Women's health, Preconception health, Adolescent health, Child health, Diets, Nutrition and Growth, Social determinants, Equity, Co-design, Longitudinal and Life-course approaches