Co-Editors
Deepali Upadhyaya PhD, MS, BSN, BA, RM, CNM
Deepali Upadhyaya has had the great fortune to work in perinatal/child health and in the education of health care providers in many places around the world, including Canada (Alberta, British Columbia & Quebec), Ireland (Dublin), Afghanistan (Badakhshan - Médecins sans Frontières), United States of America (Oregon, Washington, and Minnesota), Ethiopia (Addis Ababa), and Ghana (Carpenter and Accra). Along with a faculty position at Mount Royal University, she maintains clinical practice as a Registered Midwife. Dr. Upadhyaya holds a Ph.D. in Medical Education from the University of Calgary Community of Health Sciences Department.
Karyn Kaufman BSN, MS, DrPH, LLD (hc), Professor Emerita, McMaster University
Dr Kaufman holds an undergraduate nursing degree from the University of Michigan, a Master’s degree in midwifery from New York Medical College, a Doctor of Public Health in maternal and child health from the University of North Carolina, and an honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of British Columbia.
During the formative years of establishing midwifery in Ontario she coordinated the implementation of the legislative and policy framework within the Ontario Ministry of Health. In the early 1990’s, she became the founding director of the Midwifery Education Program at McMaster University and an Assistant Dean in the Faculty of Health Sciences in addition to being a practicing midwife in the Hamilton community. She was honored in 2010 to be inducted into McMaster University’s ‘Community of Distinction’ and in 2015 to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of Ontario Midwives.
Dr Kaufman has been a consultant to Canadian provinces and territories concerning midwifery education and midwifery practice. She led the development and implementation of the Canadian Association for Midwifery Education accreditation process for midwifery programs in Canadian universities. She has participated in international midwifery education projects in Pakistan and Haiti. More recently she collaborated with education experts under the auspices of ICM (International Confederation of Midwives) to help develop tools and methods for assessing and strengthening midwifery education programs in lower- and middle-income countries.
Editor Emeritus
Patricia McNiven PhD, RM
Associate Professor of Midwifery, McMaster University
Editorial Advisory Board
Elaine Carty, MSN, CNM, Professor Emerita, University of British Columbia
Josee LaFrance SF, PhD, Professure Department Sage Femme, Universite du Quebec of Trois-Rivieres
Josée Lafrance has been faculty at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (UQTR) within the midwifery department, for over 20 years. She is particularly involved with practicum, within the midwifery education program and in research. Her interests span also to interprofessional education. She holds a doctorate in education sciences from the UQTR (2020) and a master’s degree in primary health care from the University of Ottawa (2003). She is a bachelor of science in nursing from Université Laval (1985). She became a midwife (1989) and worked as such in London, England. She is one of the pioneers of midwifery education and the profession in Quebec.
Karline Wilson-Mitchell, DrNP, FACNM, RM
Karline Wilson-Mitchell is the current director of the TMU, Midwifery department. She is passionate about reproductive justice that informs midwifery education, practice and global partnerships. She has been a registered nurse since 1984, and a midwife since 1992. She has worked as a midwife in urban and rural settings in the U.S. and Canada and as a consultant for leadership and curriculum development in education in Jamaica, Tanzania, Zambia, Burundi, and South Sudan. Her new course, Black Birthing & Health Equity, launches in January 2024. It examines African diasporic traditions around family, perinatal care, and challenges learners to develop creative ways of conceiving and recreating healthy birth environments for their family members. Her scholarship problematizes the health disparities experienced by Black Canadians.
Naomi Wolfe, RM Aboriginal Midwife, Shakagamik-Kwe Health Centre
Johanna Geraci, RM, BHsM, MSc, Midwifery Implementation Coordinator, Newfoundland and Labrador
Johanna Geraci is a graduate of the McMaster Midwifery Education Program. She completed a master’s degree in Health Research Methodology and has conducted research on the delivery of prenatal care in Nunavut and a review of competency based assessments for midwives. Johanna has provided midwifery care and clinical mentorship in Canada and overseas. She is on a leave from the College of Midwives of Ontario where she was the Director of Policy and Professional Practice. She is currently working with Newfoundland Health Services to implement midwifery services in Happy Valley Goose Bay.
Kellie Thiessen, RM, PhD, Director Midwifery, Associate Professor, Clinical Scientist, Midwifery, Dept Family Medicine, University of British Columbia
Dr. Kellie Thiessen is a midwife Clinician Scientist who has an extensive clinical background in maternal/child health. She is a registered midwife and a registered nurse, for the last ten years she’s been an Associate Professor at the College of Nursing, University of Manitoba, but recently has taken on a new position as the Director of Midwifery at the University of British Columbia. She is also a Research Scientist at the Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba (CHRIM), BC Children’s Hospital Research Institute, and the Women’s Health Research Institute at BC Women’s Hospital. She has worked as a midwife in the United States, Brazilian, and Canadian health care systems and is committed to developing innovative collaborative models of midwifery practice that will increase choices for persons and their families, as well as provide comprehensive maternity care. Her more recent work involves clinical practice and patient-engaged research with pregnant persons who use substances and have complex care needs.