Meet our Principal Investigator: 

Michelle Jones- She qualified as a midwife in 2003 and have worked across a wide variety of clinical areas within maternity. Including leadership roles and as a maternity Matron overseeing community midwifery, birthing centres, antenatal clinics, screening, and specialist teams. Michelle have recently taken up the role of Consultant Midwife, providing strategic clinical leadership with a strong focus on improving outcomes, reducing inequalities, and championing evidence based, person centred care.

Her work has spanned system-wide maternity transformation to embed population health approaches and strengthen partnership working across our local system. Michelle is passionate about compassionate, equitable care and will be working with the CHFT clinical research team supporting BaBi, helping to ensure that local insight data and high-quality evidence inform service improvement and the ambition to reduce health inequalities across our Calderdale and Kirklees communities.

Meet our Research Midwife: 

Melanie Struthers- She qualified as a midwife in 2009 and have worked as a clinical midwife in various settings but predominantly in the community and ‘low-risk’ birth settings. Malanie have also worked in family centred case loading models as part of a home birth team and continuity of carer team. She have always been passionate about bringing best evidenced care to birthing people and families to improve outcomes and experiences of maternity and childbirth. Michelle joined the CHFT clinical research team in June 2022 part time whilst continuing clinical hours. From February 2024 she have stopped working clinically and have increased her hours in research, as shebelieve that good quality research leads to improved care for our families. Michelle is committed to an ethos of social justice and recognise the importance of increasing access and participation in research for all, to help reduce health inequalities.

Meet our Research Midwife: 

Rachel Walker -She qualified as a midwife in 2000 and worked in a wide variety of settings both community and hospital in different trusts from Newcastle to Kent and in between! Rachel have worked as a clinical research midwife since April 2024 at Calderdale and Huddersfield.  She believe everyone should have the opportunity to be involved in research and think it's essential to move practice and policy forward in a positive direction.  BaBi looks to include every pregnant person and their babies thus encompassing this inclusive philosophy and supports the health and wellbeing for future families in our local area.

Rachel be involved in raising awareness about BaBi and training midwives about the study as well as reviewing recruitment, data and potential projects alongside my work with other studies within the reproductive health and childbirth portfolio for the trust.