On this page you can find out more about the researchers you may meet in person or over the phone/Skype.

 

Dr Ellinor Olander

Ellinor is in charge of the virtual advisory group and is the best person to contact for any questions you may have.  She recently became an aunt for the first time to a boy called Julian.  Ellinor can be contacted on ellinor.olander@city.ac.uk or 0207 040 5468

 

Ms Ryc Aquino

Ryc developed her interest in maternal and child health research from her Masters studies in maternal health inequalities for Black and Minority Ethnic Women.  She is now a PhD student and interested in how midwives and health visitors communicate and collaborate when delivering maternal and child health services.  Ryc is in charge of the Advisory Group Facebook page.

 

Professor Susan Ayers

Susan is a leading expert in women’s mental health during pregnancy and the postnatal period. She is a qualified psychologist and cognitive behavioural therapist, and has a particular interest in anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. She leads the Centre for Maternal and Child Health Research at City University London. Susan has a daughter and a son, and two grand-children.

 

Dr Katherine Curtis Tyler

Katherine’s work explores how child health services and health improvement programmes work in practice, and if these can be improved. Her particular interest is children’s expertise about the fit of services with their day-to-day lives. With colleagues at several other universities, she has just completed a study of experiences of healthcare for children with a long-term illness, and a study of children’s experiences of a weight management programme.

 

Professor Christine McCourt

Christine became interested maternal and child health research through her own experiences of pregnancy, birth and motherhood and her PhD studies on psychiatry, where she worked with some women who had suffered from postnatal mental health problems. Christine has managed a national study which looked at a new model of midwifery care – caseload midwifery – which included women’s and midwives’ experiences of care as well as clinical outcomes and costs. Christine is interested in improving quality and women’s experiences of maternity care, including research on choice of place of birth (home, midwifery-led units etc).

 

Dr Louise Phillips

Louise is interested in mental illness occurring at the time of pregnancy and following birth. She is currently developing this research with health professionals from the antenatal and perinatal mental health services in East London.  She is a Mental Health Nurse, Senior Lecturer and Researcher specialising in women’s mental health, and a mother to a daughter.