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Helen McLachlan
RN, GradDipAdvNurs(Mid), MNursStud, PhD

Senior Research Fellow

 
Email: h.mclachlan@latrobe.edu.au
Fax: 03 9479 5988
Telephone: 03 9479 5955
 

Helen McLachlan has a clinical and research background in midwifery and is currently a Senior Research Fellow at Mother & Child Health Research, La Trobe University. She is also Senior Lecturer in midwifery at the Division of Nursing and Midwifery, La Trobe University. Her research interests include cultural aspects of childbirth (PhD thesis), models of maternity care, postnatal care and breastfeeding. She has conducted studies using a variety of research designs (eg RCTs, surveys, focus groups). Her major teaching areas include pregnancy and postnatal care. 
 
MAJOR RESEARCH INTERESTS
 
  • Midwifery models of care including caseload and team midwifery
  • Childbirth and culture
  • Breastfeeding
  • Evaluating and improving postnatal care
 
CURRENT PROJECTS
 

Caseload midwifery for women at low risk of medical complications: a randomised controlled trial (COSMOS)
Team:

Dr Helen McLachlan, Dr Della Forster, Ms Mary-Anne Davey, Prof Judith Lumley, Ms Tanya Farrell, Prof Jeremy Oats, Ms Lisa Gold, Prof Ulla Waldenstrom, Prof Leah Albers. Project coordinator: Mary Anne Biro. PhD student: Michelle Newton.
Funding: NHMRC
Status:

Data collection
 

PinC Private - a review of postnatal care in private hospitals in Victoria

Team:

Jo Rayner, Della Forster, Helen McLachlan, Jane Yelland, Louise Peters
Funding:

Mother and Child Health and Faculty of Health Sciences, La Trobe University
Status:

Paper in preparation
 

PinC ANEW: Supporting women after childbirth: enhancing the knowledge and skills of midwives to identify and support women with psychosocial issues during the postnatal period.
Team:

Helen McLachlan, Della Forster, Jane Yelland, Jo Rayner, Stephanie Brown  Kelsey Hegarty, Jane Gunn, Lisa Love, Margie Cass, Jenni Kelly, Rebecca Collins
Funding:

Faculty of Health Sciences  (La Trobe University )

Status:

Paper in preparation
 

PinC Package: a feasibility study of a patient preference approach to individualised flexible postnatal care
Team:

Della Forster, Helen McLachlan, Jo Rayner, Jane Yelland, Lisa Gold

Funding:

Faculty of Health Sciences Research Support Grant (La Trobe University )

Status:

Feasibility study in progress
 

PinC Documents: a study exploring the documentation used in postnatal units in Victoria

Team:

Della Forster, Helen McLachlan, Tracey Savage, Jo Rayner

Funding:

Unfunded Masters project

Status:

Thesis submitted; paper in preparation

 

Peer support for breastfeeding: a feasibility study

Team:

Della Forster, Helen McLachlan, Mary-Ann Davey, Lisa Amir, Lisa Gold, Jo Rayner

Funding:

La Trobe University
Status:

Paper in preparation
 

The views, experiences and referral patterns of Victorian IVF specialists regarding fertility enhancement by complementary and alternative medicine (CAM)
Team:

Jo Rayner, Della Forster, Helen McLachlan, Michelle Kealy, Maree Pirotta
Funding:

Trobe University Faculty Health Sciences Faculty Grant
Status:

Data collection

 

MILC: Mothers and Infants Lactation Cohort study

Team:

Della Forster, Lisa Amir, Helen McLachlan, Anita Moorhead, Helene Johns, Kerri McEgan, Chris Scott, Rachael Ford, Kinga Pemo
Funding:

Seeking funding
Status:

Project development, seeking funding and ethics approval
 

WAVE. Women’s and staff views: an evaluation of maternity care at Barwon Health

Team:

Helen McLachlan, Della Forster, Mary-Ann Davey, Therese Cotter, Jenny Kelly. PhD students: Jane Morrow and Michelle Newton
Funding:

Department of Human Services Victoria and Barwon Health
Status:

Data collection
 
PUBLICATIONS (Selected)

McLachlan H, Forster D,  Davey MA, Lumley J, Farrell T, Oats J, Gold L, Waldenström U, Albers L,  Biro M . COSMOS: COmparing Standard Maternity care with One-to-one midwifery Support: a randomised controlled trial. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 2008, August 5; 8:35.

Forster D, McLachlan H, Rayner J, Yelland J, Gold L, Rayner S. The early postnatal period: exploring women’s views, expectations and experiences of care using focus groups in Victoria, Australia. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth. 2008, Jul 22; 8:27.

McLachlan HL, Forster DA, Yelland J, Rayner J, Lumley J. Is the organisation and structure of hospital postnatal care a barrier to quality care? Findings from a state-wide review in Victoria, Australia. Midwifery 2008 Sep; 24(3):358-70.

Rayner J, Forster D, McLachlan H, Yelland J, Davey M-A. What are the views and experiences of midwives working in hospital based postnatal care? Findings from a state-wide review of hospital postnatal care in Victoria, Australia. Midwifery, 2008 Sep; 24(3):310-20.

Forster D, McLachlan H. Women’s views and experiences of breastfeeding: positive, negative, or just good for the baby? In press, Midwifery. Accepted for publication 16th May 2008.

Amir LH, Forster DA, Lumley J, McLachlan H.  A descriptive study of mastitis in Australian breastfeeding women: incidence and determinants. BMC Public Health. 2007, 7:62.

Forster Della A, McLachlan Helen L Breastfeeding initiation: do practices in the birth setting make a difference? Journal of Midwifery and Women’s health. 2007 May-Jun;52(3):273-80 (Invited paper).

Yelland J, McLachlan H, Forster D, Rayner J, Lumley J. How is maternal psychosocial health assessed and promoted in the early postnatal period? Findings from a review of hospital postnatal care in Victoria, Australia, Midwifery (2007) 23, 287–297.

Forster D, McLachlan H, Lumley J. Factors associated with continuing to feed any breast milk at six months postpartum in a group of Australian women. Int Breastfeed J. 2006, 1:18.

McLachlan H, Forster D. Initial breastfeeding attitudes and practices of women born in Turkey, Vietnam and Australia after giving birth in Australia. BMC International Breastfeeding Journal 2006, 1:7 (7 April 2006)

Forster DA, McLachlan HL, Yelland J, Rayner J, Lumley J, Davey M-A, Staffing in postnatal units: is it adequate for the provision of quality care?  Staff perspectives from a state-wide review of postnatal care in Victoria, Australia.  BMC Health Services Research, 2006;6:83 (4 July).

McLachlan H, Waldenström U. Childbirth experiences in Australia of women born in Turkey, Vietnam and Australia. Birth, 2005; 32(4):272-282.

Forster D, McLachlan H, Lumley J, Beanland C, Waldenström U, Amir L. Two mid-pregnancy interventions to increase the initiation and duration of breastfeeding: a randomized controlled trial. Birth 2004;31(3):176-182.

Amir L, Forster D, McLachlan H, Lumley J. Incidence of breast abscess in lactating women: report from an Australian cohort. BJOG December 2004; 111 (12): 1378-1381.
 
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Content Approved by: Director, Mother and Child Health Research
Page maintained by: Administrator
Last Updated: 26 August 2007