Alison Macfarlane

Professor of Perinatal Health

Career summary

Alison Macfarlane joined City in March 2001 to lead research in the Department of Midwifery after working at the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit since the late 1970s on research related to maternity care and the health of women and babies. Before that she worked as a statistician in agricultural research, transport surveys and on the health effects of air pollution. As a statistician, she is interested in the interpretation and use of official statistics and in their relationship with policy, in relation to health and health care in its widest sense as well as to maternity issues in particular. In October 2010, she stood down from her role as research lead, but will continue to research part time after retiring from full time work in March 2011.

Qualifications

BA Mathematics, University of Oxford, 1964
Academic Postgraduate Diploma in Statistics, University College London, 1965

Current Research

Assessing the impact of a new birth centre on choice and outcome of maternity care in an inner city area. National Institute for Health Research, Research for Patient Benefit.

Linkage, analysis and dissemination of national birth and maternity data for England and Wales. Medical Research Council.

Europeristat-IV perinatal indicators project. Funded by EC- Public Health Executive Agency.

Areas of Interests

Particular areas of interest are inequalities in health of parents and babies particularly in relation to social factors, migration and access to maternity care, multiple births and their implications and the outcome of birth in community and hospital settings.
History of official statistics and maternity statistics in particular. Florence Nightingale's involvement with maternity statistics.

Publications

Macfarlane AJ, Mugford M. Birth counts: statistics of pregnancy and childbirth. Volume 1,Text. Second edition. London: The Stationery Office, 2000.

Macfarlane AJ, Mugford M, Henderson J, Furtado A, Stevens J, Dunn A. Birth counts: statistics of pregnancy and childbirth. Volume 2,Tables. Second edition. London: The Stationery Office, 2000.

Macfarlane AJ, Mugford M, Henderson J, Furtado A, Stevens J, Dunn A. Birth counts: statistics of pregnancy and childbirth. Volume 2,Tables on CD-ROM..Issue 1. Oxford: National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit, 2001.

Campbell R, Macfarlane AJ. Where to be born? The debate and the evidence. [book] Oxford: NPEU 1987. Second edition. Oxford: National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit, 1994.

Botting BJ, Macfarlane AJ, Price FV, eds. Three, four and more. A study of triplet and higher order births. [book] London HMSO 1990.

Professional Memberships

Faculty of Public Health Medicine, Honorary Member, 1992

Royal Statistical Society, Chartered Statistician, 1993

Faculty of Public Health, Fellow, 2001