Historically, Australia’s criminal system has largely overlooked the needs of incarcerated mothers, and attitudes towards mothering in prison have been steeped in prejudice. I saw this as a natural progression from my original research focus on rare pregnancy conditions, as I thought at the time pregnancy and mothering in prison were rare.” Pregnancy and mothering in prison “From that moment, I wanted to know the who, what, when, where, and why of pregnant and birthing women in prison.

It was completely dehumanising and all I could think of was, why? And who in any likelihood was going to escape during labour?” Professor Sullivan asked. “On the news one night in the early 2000s, I saw footage of a woman manacled to a bed during labour. Then one day, an image she saw on television shocked Professor Sullivan, prompting her to expand her approach to studying rare pregnancy conditions. Professor Elizabeth Sullivan has committed her career to putting rare maternal conditions on Australia’s public health agenda.įor much of her career, her focus was on improving outcomes for women with rare and severe medical conditions during pregnancy, such as amniotic fluid embolism, rheumatic heart disease and cancer. She is a public health physician and champion for equity, diversity and inclusion in the education sector.

Professor Elizabeth Sullivan is an international expert in maternal and justice health and an advocate for human rights for people in contact with the criminal justice system.

Hard disk sentinel professional v5.20.5