Dr Barbara Vernon (BA Hons, PhD) is the CEO of Women's Healthcare Australasia a peak not-for-profit body of 140+ maternity services. Through WHA, hospitals share data and expertise to improve care and outcomes for women and newborns. Under her leadership, WHA has grown to include 86% of public births in Australia and has partnered with both government and research organisations to facilitate improvements in clinical care and outcomes for women and newborns, including on reducing severe perineal tears. Dr Vernon was the CEO of the Australian College of Midwives from 2003 to 2010. She is passionate about closing the gap between evidence and practice in the maternity care sector, and sees capacity building in improvement science among maternity service leaders and clinicians as a key strategy to acerating and sustaining improvement efforts.

Nigel Lee is a midwife and researcher with over 25 years experience working in birthing settings in Australian and the UK. Well known for his work with sterile water injections he has also published a number of studies into the management of second stage labour and prevention of perineal injury.


Alecia Staines is the Director of Maternity Consumer Network, a classroom teacher, mother-of-5 and sits on a variety of Committees and Working Groups as a consumer representative on behalf of MCN. She is passionate about women receiving access to continuity of midwifery carer, increasing rural birthing options and evidence-based maternity care.