Chris Cornwell,
ACMI SA National Delegate was awarded a Public Service Medal this past
Australia Day for her contribution to Midwifery Education and Practice. Below
is what is on the website explaining why she was bestowed this prestigious
award. (She is also my boss!!)
Mrs
Christine Cornwell
Divisional Chief, Nursing and Midwifery
Women�s and Children�s
Hospital
Department
of Human Services
For
outstanding service to midwifery education and
practice
Mrs Christine Cornwell is the
Divisional Chief, Nursing and Midwifery, Women�s and Children�s Hospital. In addition to the responsibilities and duties required of her
by this role, Mrs Cornwell has been involved with and is an integral part of
some ground breaking initiatives concerned with the ongoing development of
midwifery education and practice in South Australia.
The recruitment and retention of
midwives in South Australia is a serious problem.
Mrs Cornwell has been forward thinking in dealing with this problem by
campaigning for and supporting new models of midwifery education and models of
care. She has achieved this through being involved with various
committees in her position at the Women�s and Children�s Hospital, as a member
of the South Australian Branch of the Australian College of Midwives (ACMI)
management committee and as a member of the ACMI National management
committee.
Within her role, Mrs Cornwell has been
a strong advocate for midwives and the education of midwifery. Her advocacy along with other midwives has resulted in both the
University of South Australia and Flinders University establishing
Undergraduate Midwifery (Pre-Registration) Degrees. These programs
reflect the philosophy of �women centred; midwifery practice that recognises
the needs of individual women in relation to choice, control and continuity of
care�.
Mrs Cornwell has also led the
development of a Midwifery Caseload Model of Care at the Women�s and
Children�s Hospital. Caseload Midwifery is a model of care
where women have their own midwife and a backup midwife, who provides care
throughout her pregnancy, labour, birth and postnatal period. This
program is the first for South Australia and is to commence in September
2003. The development of this service has not been an easy task, taking
4-5 years to be developed in collaboration with consumers, midwives, the
Department of Human Services, the Australian Nursing Federation and her
medical colleagues.
Mrs Cornwell�s support during the
inception of the Northern Women�s Community Midwifery Service, a
groundbreaking model of midwifery care, contribute significantly to its
ongoing success. This initiative allows midwives to care
for birthing women in both the community and hospital
settings.
Mrs Cornwell was recognised by her
midwifery colleagues for her excellence in midwifery when she was awarded the
highly coveted �South Australian Excellence in Midwifery Leadership� Award
during International Midwives Day in May 2003.
