midwifery and maternal health from east to west

About

I qualified as a midwife in 1999, from King’s College London, and over the following ten years, was fortunate to work in some pioneering midwifery settings, including one of the UK’s first stand-alone birth centres and later a Sure Start caseloading (one-to-one) team. I also set up a large NHS breastfeeding support service which led to significantly increased breastfeeding rates in it’s area.  I became increasingly interested in the public health role of the midwife, and completed a master’s degree in public health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

The focus of my work over the past decade has been global midwifery and maternal health.  I lived in Afghanistan, working on a safe motherhood project and supporting Afghan midwifery and was formally a trustee for Women & Children First (UK), a charity working to improve the lives of mothers and newborns in some of the poorest countries in the world. I also blogged for Girls Globe, raising awareness of issues for girls and women around the world.  I currently host a PhDMidwives, a Twitter account which brings together midwives working towards a PhD, createing a platform to share knowledge as well as for peer-support.

I am currently a doctoral researcher at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.  My qualitative research study explores the perinatal experiences of forced migrant women in Western Balkan countries, underpinned by a feminist perspective.

Contact me here