Tracey Haimes

Tracey currently works as a Registered Nurse and Midwife at North Metropolitan Health Service,  King Edward Memorial Hospital, Western Australia.

In health care, I firstly volunteered for six months at the age of seventeen.  This involved a weekly therapy program and respite for an infant with cerebral palsy and his family.  Whilst backpacking I worked in the UK as a live inn care companion for a gentleman with cerebral palsy for one year.  I then gained employment with the Sir David Brand Centre Perth Western Australia. This involved various roles for children, young adults and the elderly with cerebral palsy. The roles included the community as a carer for respite, group homes and recreational activities as a recreational officer.

Obtained Certificate IV in Enrolled Nursing in 2000. I then worked as a surgical nurse for a number of years. During this time, I completed my Registered Nursing conversion, graduating with a Bachelor of Registered Nursing in 2007. This involved practical placements in the country setting of Western Australia. Some of the highlights were, primary health promotion placement. I was team leader for the dental hygiene group. As a team leader I created a play on dental hygiene for children.  This was then performed by the group at the local school assembly and various community centres including an indigenous community called Wakathuni. Another memorable practical placement included being part of my first birth in a rural hospital. This inspired me to train as a Midwife, graduating with a Postgraduate Diploma in Midwifery in 2009.

From a young age I have worked in various roles volunteering in the healthcare setting. This included completion of my Queen Scout Award. During my career as a Registered Nurse/Midwife I completed a five-day midwifery conference in Suva, Fiji in 2016.  I then participated in a few births in the old capital Levuka, Fiji, a memorable experience.

I became more interested in preeclampsia from working alongside clinically with obstetric physicians who showed a strong dedication in the care and support for women with preeclampsia. My mother also had severe preeclampsia with my brother and a history of recent rheumatic fever.

As a midwife, I first heard about AAPEC at an AAPEC study day on preeclampsia in 2017, where I purchased a copy of the book, ‘Understanding Pre eclampsia’ by Jocye Cowan, Prof Chris Redman, Isabel Walker. This has given me a keen interest to further my knowledge and research on preeclampsia.