Ep 105 Deborah Fox on water births in Singapore, intrapartum transfers and reimagining technology in midwifery

Ep 105  (http://ibit.ly/Re5V) Deborah Fox on water births in Singapore, intrapartum transfers and reimagining technology in midwifery

#PhDMidwives #research #midwifery #waterbirth #transfers #technology #UTS #Singapore

research link ibit.ly/mQ4jm

What if transfer from a planned home birth wasn’t a failure but proof the system is working? We sit down with Deborah Fox to unpack a career that moved from the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra to the frontline of woman-centred maternity care — and into the engine room where new technologies are designed. From scaling a water birth service in Singapore to shaping wireless CTG so women can keep moving in labour, Deborah shows how evidence and empathy can live alongside devices without crowding out choice.

We walk through the findings of her grounded theory PhD on intrapartum transfer and why the real friction often occurs between midwives across settings, not between midwives and obstetricians. The fix isn’t blame; it’s continuity, shared protocols, and a culture that holds the woman at the centre. Deborah’s current work uses mediation theory to ask smarter questions about technology: not whether it’s good or bad, but how it shapes care — and how midwives and women can shape it back. That approach now guides collaborations with industry so future fetal monitoring and maternity devices embody mobility, consent, and informed choice from the start.

The horizon is bold and necessary: virtual maternity wards and remote monitoring that keep complex pregnancies at home with strong midwifery relationships, timely escalation, and less disruption for families. In a country where distance defines access, this is more than convenience; it’s equity. We talk practical steps for protecting physiology in every setting — from skin-to-skin in theatre to mobility in labour — and the habits that keep relational care alive across screens and sensors.

If you care about safer births, better choices, and technology that serves people rather than the other way around, this conversation will give you fresh tools and a hopeful roadmap. Subscribe, share with a colleague, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway — what would make maternity care more woman-centred where you live?

Chapters

• 0:53 Oxford Beginnings And Academic Sabbatical
• 6:49 Childhood Calling And A Life In Music
• 11:10 Singapore: Building A Water Birth Service
• 19:13 Master’s Research And Wireless CTG
• 23:24 PhD On Home Birth Transfers
• 27:46 Conflict, Culture, And Integration
• 31:43 Continuity Of Care And Education
• 34:29 PhD Survival, Community, And Celebration
• 38:37 Academic Career And Research Focus
• 41:37 Technology, Mediation Theory, And Design
• 46:42 Virtual Maternity Care And Remote Monitoring
• 51:36 Geography, Equity, And Rural Models
• 55:31 Embracing Tech Without Losing Relationship