Deborah Davis

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Clinical Chair in Midwifery, Disciplines of Nursing & Midwifery

RM, BN, MNS, PhD

Email: Deborah.Davis@canberra.edu.au

Phone: +61 (0)2 6206 3869

Fax: +61 (0)2 6201 5128

Room: 10B35

 

Areas of Teaching

  • Midwifery
  • Research
  • Postmodern and feminist theory

Research

Research Interests

Deborah has a number of research interests including place of birth and how the environment impacts on the practice of midwifery and the experiences and outcomes of women and their supporters.  Her early career as a midwife focused on homebirth and she watched (and learnt) as women used different sorts of spaces within the home to labour and give birth. She also noticed how the environment impacted on her practice as a midwife and the way that she felt about childbirth. Space is far from inert, it communicates something to us about childbirth and this makes us feel and behave in certain ways.  A space borne of biomedicine (like the modern obstetric hospital) communicates childbirth as a risky event and this sort of environment can make us (midwives, medical staff, women and their supporters) feel afraid and anxious.  This sort of environment is not ideal in terms of supporting and encouraging physiological birth. 

Deborah’s PhD; “The politics of practice. Case-loading midwifery practice in New Zealand”, explored the discursive construction of case-loading midwifery in New Zealand focusing on midwifery care within the obstetric hospital. The obstetric hospital setting provides midwives with particular challenges as they work to create, maintain and protect the birthing space of the women in their care.  Ultimately midwives work to create a space for birthing that is perhaps unique to each midwife/woman pairing. 

Still in New Zealand, the BirthPlace study examined the outcomes of low risk women in the care of midwives, planning to give birth at home, and in birth centers and obstetric hospitals. This research found that women planning to give birth in hospital settings had much greater risk of obstetric intervention in labour and birth and higher rates of caesarean section than similar women planning to give birth at home or in a birth centre.

Deborah’s current work in this area includes examining the relationship between birth unit design and communication patterns and “(em)Placed midwifery practice” a study of the way place impacts on midwifery practice, both with colleagues at the University of Technology, Sydney and the later also including an international arm with midwifery researchers at the University of the West of Scotland.

Research Grants and Awards (2010-2011 Only)

Foureur, M. Homer, C. Fenwick J., Davis, D. Sorensen, R. Forbes I. (2011). Theorising the relationship between birth unit design and the communication patterns of labouring women and their maternity care providers (funding $277.992.00 ARC).

Wong N., Davis D., Browne J. (2011). Comparing clinical outcomes for select primiparous women experiencing continuity of midwifery care and standard maternity care at the Canberra hospital: a retrospective cohort study. (Funding $5000.00 ACT Health)

Davis D., Foureur, M, Adams, C, Clements, V., Mollart, L., Raymond J. Teate, A, & Zushcman A. (2010). An evaluation of a new antenatal maternity service model focusing on weight management for overweight and obese women in North Sydney Central Coast and South East Sydney Illawarra Area Health Services. University of Technology, Sydney and SESIAHS, NSCCAHS. (funding $200,000 NSW Health).

Foureur M, Fenwick J, Idema R, Homer S, Verghese G, David D, Pandolf B, Leap N, Forbes I. (2010). Developing Cutting Edge Birth unit Design: A Feasibility Study. (funding $45.000.00 University of Technology, Sydney).

 

Recent Publications

 

Journal Articles (2010-2011 Only)

Davis, D., Foureur, M., Clements V., Brodie , P. (In press)The self reported confidence of newly graduated midwives before and after their first year of practice in Sydney, Australia. Women and Birth (doi:10.1016/j.wombi.2011.03.005 )

Davis, D., Baddock, S., Pairman, S., Hunter, M., Benn, C., Wilson, D., & Dixon, L., Herbison, P. (2011). Planned Place of Birth in New Zealand: Does It Affect Mode of Birth and Intervention Rates Among Low-Risk Women? Birth, 38(2):111-119.

Davis, D. & Walker K. (2011). Case-loading midwifery in New Zealand: Bridging the normal/abnormal divide "with woman".  Midwifery. 27(1): 46-52. 

Hunter, M., S. Pairman, Benn, C., Baddock, S., Davis, D., Herbison, P., Dixon, L., Wilson, D., Anderson J. (2011). Do low risk women actually birth in their planned place of birth and does ethnicity influence comen's chocies of birthplace? New Zealand College of Midwives, 44: 5-11.

Foureur, M., Leap, N., Davis, D.L., Forbes, I. & Homer, C.S. (2010), 'Developing the Birth Unit Design Spatial Evaluation Tool (BudSet) In Australia: A Qualitative Study', Health Environments Research & Design Journal, vol. 3, no. 4, pp. 43-57.

Davis, D. & Walker K. (2010).  Case-loading midwifery in New Zealand. Making space for childbirth. Midwifery. 26(6):603-8.
Foureur, M., Davis, D., Fenwick, J, Leap, N. Iedema, R., Forbes,I. & Homer, C. (2010). The relationship between birth unit design and safe, satisfying birth: Developing a hypothetical model. Midwifery. 26(5):520-525.

Foureur, M., Leap, N., Davis, D.L., Forbes, I., Homer, C.S. (2010). Testing the birth unit design spatial evaluation tool (BUDSET) in Australia: a Pilot Study, Health Environments Research & Design Journal, vol. 4, no. 2, pp. 36-60.

Davis, D. & Walker K. (2010). Re-discovering the material body through an exploration of theories of embodiment. Midwifery. 26(10): 457-462.

Davis, D. & Walker K. (2010).  The corporeal, the social and space/place: Exploring intersections from a midwifery perspective.  Gender, Place and Culture - A Journal of Feminist Geography. 17(3): 377 – 391.

 

Conference Presentations (2010-2011 Only)

Stewart S. & Davis D. Immersive simulation in the virtual world of Second Life. International Confederation of Midwives, 29th triennial congress, Durban  South Africa,19-23 June 2011.

Foureur, M. Davis, D. Raymond J., Clements V., Adams, C., Mollart, L., Zuschmann, A.,  Teate, A.  (2011) An innovative, collaborative model of antenatal care for overweight and obese women. (Poster). Perinatal Society of Australia and New Zealand 15th Annual congress, Hobart TAS. 10-13 April 2011.

Davis D, Herbison P, Baddock S, Pairman S, Hunter M, Benn C, Anderson J, Wilson D, Dixon L. Comparing active and physiological management of third stage of labour in a cohort of low risk women in the care of midwives in New Zealand. Perinatal Society of Australia and New Zealand 15th Annual congress, Hobart TAS. 10-13 April 2011.

Davis D. (Invited)  (2010). Real Life learning in the world of second life. Curriculum Innovation and Quality Forum 20101-2 December. Crowne Plaza, Melbourne.

Davis, D., Herbison, P., Baddock, S., Pairman, S., Hunter, M., Benn, C., Anderson, J., Wilson, D., & Dixon, L. (invited)(2010). The power of place: comparing outcomes for women planning to give birth in a variety of settings.New Zealand College of Midwives 11th Biennial Conference. Strengthening Midwifery, Strengthening Families. 3rd -5th  September. Rotorua, New Zealand.

Davis, D., Herbison, P., Baddock, S., Pairman, S., Hunter, M., Benn, C., Anderson, J., Wilson, D., & Dixon, L.(2010).. The power of place: Comparing childbirth outcomes for women birthing in different settings in New Zealand. The Place of Birth. The Canadian Association of Midwives 10th AGM, Conference & Exhibit. 6th -8th October. Edmonton Alberta, Canada.

Davis D., Foureur M., Homer, C., Leap, N., Forbes I. (2010). Designing better birthing spaces. The Place of Birth. The Canadian Association of Midwives 10th AGM, Conference & Exhibit. October 6-8, 2010, Edmonton Alberta, Canada

Clements, V., Adams, C., Zuschmann, A., Davis, D, Foureur, M., & Mollart, L. (2010). Berthing safely: Addressing obesity in pregnancy. Australian College of Midwives NSW Branch State Conference. Midwifery providing a safe harbour. 17th -18th September 2010. Kiama, NSW.

Clements, V., Adams, C., Zuschmann, A., Davis, D, Foureur, M., & Mollart, L. (2010). Collaborative working around maternal obesity. Breathing New Life 3rd Biennial Conference. 1-3 July. Alice Springs.

Gear A., Forde, S., Hatton, M., Robertson, A., & Davis, D. (2010). Developing a Model for Student Midwifery Clinical Placement in a Rural Context: The Experience of the Greater Southern Area Health Service (NSW). Breathing New Life 3rd Biennial Conference. 1-3 July. Alice Springs.

Davis D, Herbison P, Baddock S, Pairman S, Hunter M, Benn C, Anderson J, Wilson D, & Dixon L. (2010). The Impact of Place on Childbirth Outcomes in New Zealand. Breathing New Life. 3rd Biennial Conference. 1-3 July. Alice Springs.

Davis D, Herbison P, Baddock S, Pairman S, Hunter M, Benn C, Anderson J, Wilson D, Dixon L. (2010).The Impact of Place on Childbirth Outcomes in New Zealand. Virtual International Day of the Midwife. 2nd Annual Conference. 5th May.

Davis, D, Herbison, P., Baddock, S., Pairman, S., Hunter, M., Benn, C., Anderson, J., Wilson, D., & Dixon, L. (2010). The Impact of Place on Childbirth Outcomes in New Zealand.14th Annual Congress of the Perinatal Society of Australia and New Zealand. 28-31 March. Wellington New Zealand.

Davis D. (2010). Second Life. The development of a virtual Birth Centre. Celebrating excellence in Midwifery. March 4th. Royal Hospital for Women, Randwick.