Travel story: Dr Jessica Grieger

Dr Jessica Grieger from the Robinson Research Institute’s Placental development Research Group attended the Perinatal Society of Australia and New Zealand (PSANZ) Conference in Canberra in April 2017.

Jessica presented her research on Poor metabolic health, irrespective of obesity, increases risk for gestational diabetes and preeclampsia in women participating in the multi-centre, prospective SCOPE cohort.

This is what Jessica had to say about her experience:

What was a highlight of the conference?

The first highlight was the opening plenary session, chaired by Jonathan Morris. The interactive panel of overseas guest speakers was intriguing, particularly Frank Chervenak, who discussed the politics and economics of the healthcare system in the US.

Another highlight was listening to Jane Dahlstrom and Meri Robertson speak about placental pathology, vasculature and appearances of the placenta on ultrasound. The two speakers presented 10 case studies explaining the integration of ultrasound scans and placental histopathology and the importance of shared knowledge and collaboration between research and clinical perspectives.

Another interesting session was the controversial opinions regarding home births or not. There were a mix of views between obstetricians and midwives, discussing differences and similarities in the range of care between a home vs hospital birth, living in remote or well-resourced areas, and the implications if/when something goes wrong with a home birth vs a hospital birth.

Did you meet any researchers or collaborators of significance? Why are they important to your work?

I met the founder of StillAware, a foundation working towards reducing preventable stillbirth. We discussed a number of opportunities regarding my potential role in their advisory group, how to collaborate in the research setting, as well as translating information to pregnant women on understanding baby’s kicks and knowing when to seek help if something appears to be changing with the unborn baby.

How will the experience support you and your research going forward?

It has identified additional research interests which I can pursue in my current position as well as increased my awareness of potential people I could link ideas with.