Maralyn Foureur, Professor of Midwifery in the Centre for Midwifery, Child and Family Health at UTS:Health, is a finalist in the 2015 Telstra Business Women's Awards.
The awards champion women from diverse industries, ensuring their achievements become part of the national conversation. Maralyn is a finalist in the New South Wales Government and Academia Award category, alongside four other women.
A midwife for 40 years and academic for the past 20 years, Maralyn leads a team of midwives who prepare graduates to competently and compassionately care for women during pregnancy, childbirth and early parenting.
In 1984 Maralyn set up the first independent midwifery practice in Australia with visiting rights to maternity hospitals in Newcastle, NSW.
With a record of 100 publications and more than $5 million in research grants to her name, Maralyn is regarded as a world leader in researching birth unit design and its impact on childbearing women and families, as well as the quality and safety of maternity care provided by midwives.
Her research findings have been translated into the design of several new Australian maternity units in Sydney, Canberra and Townsville.
"My lifetime research has contributed knowledge to understanding how relationship based care and an optimally-designed birth unit provide the best environment for labour and birth to unfold in the best way possible," said Maralyn.
Good luck Maralyn!