Tracy Humphrey

Professor Tracy Humphrey is Dean of Health & Social Care at Edinburgh Napier University.

Tracy studied for her undergraduate degree in midwifery at the University of Stirling. Since then, she has had a successful clinical academic career working in a range of settings and in a variety of senior clinical, management, educational and research roles across the North of Scotland.

After completing her MSc in Midwifery at the University of Aberdeen in 2003, she applied for a PhD studentship with the Nursing, Midwifery & Allied Health Professionals Research Training Scheme. This was a flagship Scottish Government initiative to increase the research capacity amongst these professional groups.

After a competitive process, she was the only midwife to be awarded a funded studentship and she went onto successfully complete her PhD in 2007, whilst continuing to work in clinical practice.

As a Professor of Midwifery, she has influenced and implemented national maternal and neonatal policies in Scotland through her research, practice and role as a government advisor.

Her areas of research and publications are on reducing unnecessary interventions during childbirth and improving outcomes for women and families in remote and rural areas through educational and service improvement initiatives.

Internationally, Tracy is known for her work with Ministries of Health in low and middle income countries where there are high rates of maternal and new-born mortality. This has led to the introduction of accelerated direct entry midwifery programmes of education and midwife led pathways of care, with a demonstrable impact on skilled birth attendance rates and quality of care.

Since becoming Dean of School for Health & Social Care at Edinburgh Napier University, Tracy has also been given a public appointment as a Non-Executive Board Director at NHS Lothian.