iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

BirthSmallTalk is your reliable guide to the evidence about fetal monitoring (and more). Subscribe to stay on top of the latest research. education.birthsmalltalk.com/newsletter

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Follow for trustworthy and accessible information to support YOUR decision making. #Birth #Pregnancy #Maternity #Midwife #FetalMonitoring

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

There's an entirely different way of thinking about maternity services. Risk and Uncertainty in Maternity Care: Putting Risk In Its Place provides an opportunity to look differently at the work you do. Ask your uni or hospital library to put it on the shelves. link.springer.com/book/9783032...

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Never miss a blog post, a workshop, or an important evidence update from me again. Subscribe to the Birth Small Talk newsletter and I'll be in touch once a month. Fetal Monitoring information you can rely on - for your birth or for your practice. education.birthsmalltalk.com/newsletter

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Follow for trustworthy and accessible information to support YOUR decision making. #Birth #Pregnancy #Maternity #Midwife #FetalMonitoring

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

BirthSmallTalk is your reliable guide to the evidence about fetal monitoring (and more). Subscribe to stay on top of the latest research. education.birthsmalltalk.com/newsletter

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

Follow for trustworthy and accessible information to support YOUR decision making. #Birth #Pregnancy #Maternity #Midwife #FetalMonitoring

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

Follow for trustworthy and accessible information to support YOUR decision making. #Birth #Pregnancy #Maternity #Midwife #FetalMonitoring

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

Academic junk mail came as a surprise when it first started happening to me. Now I'm used to seeing a dozen or so of these most days. I particularly love the ones from dead authors like George Orwell!

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

Life is full in very lovely ways - but I can't fit it all in anymore. Changes are coming, including for the Birth Small Talk Blog. Comment BLOG and I'll send you the link so you know what is going on, what is changing and what isn't.

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

BirthSmallTalk is your reliable guide to the evidence about fetal monitoring (and more). Subscribe to stay on top of the latest research. education.birthsmalltalk.com/newsletter

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 06/06/2026

Tell me what you most want to see sorted out! I'm currently working on 👗Perfectly practical pockets in all women's clothing 🛡️Fetal monitoring options that actually work 🏡Self-cleaning houses #WorldDomination #JustForFun #NoPromises

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

Follow for trustworthy and accessible information to support YOUR decision making. #Birth #Pregnancy #Maternity #Midwife #FetalMonitoring

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

There's increased awareness of confusion between maternal and fetal heart rates during CTG monitoring. New research suggests adding maternal heart rate data may negatively impact CTG interpretation. Read more on the blog, including my suggestions to address this issue. wp.me/pbCorF-19q

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

I always get excited seeing Institutional Ethnographies getting published. It’s such a useful methodology.

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

There's a strong belief that recording every single fetal heart beat rather than a patchy recording with loss of signal leads to better outcomes for babies. New research examines whether this is true - and their findings surprised even me! birthsmalltalk.com/2026/05/13/i...

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

My wish for women who want to or are on their way to becoming mothers: May your journey to and through motherhood be surrounded by joy, confidence, security, and love. My commitment is to keep working at building a world where this is true for all. #MothersDay2026 #Mothers

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

Dopamine in the making, dopamine in the wearing!

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

Here it is in print at last! Along with fellow obstetricians Susan Bewley and Annie Lyerly, I contributed a chapter called CTG monitoring: Obstetricians and the Risk Problem. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of it as it looks really interesting! link.springer.com/book/9783032...

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

Midwifery is a cost-effective public health intervention - all around the world. Every woman should have access to a midwife locally, and every midwife should be supported by a brilliant team of midwives who have their back. #IDM2026 #ICM #Midwife #1MillionMore

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

Follow for trustworthy and accessible information to support YOUR decision making. #Birth #Pregnancy #Maternity #Midwife #FetalMonitoring

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

I collect goddess figurines. I enjoy what they suggest about cultural views on women and power. Meet Kali, the fierce mother goddess—protective and powerful, unlike the meek and mild depictions in Christianity. I moved her to my office last week for some serious "don't mess with my tribe" energy!

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 26/04/2026

Today is my favourite sort of day. Time to sit on the deck with the family, have a cuppa, bounce the GrandBaby on my knee, pat Lucy the Wonder Dog, and enjoy autumn sun.

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

Central fetal monitoring: Do you love it or loath it? I have some serious concerns... This week on the blog - my reasons for being worried about the safety and ethics of central fetal monitoring. wp.me/pbCorF-17a

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

This one joined me for my morning meditation today

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

My latest paper - a literature review led by midwife and PhD candidate Anna Melamed. She found that risk assessment interventions in the UK lack solid evidence and may even harm women by diverting them from midwifery care. Read more: doi.org/10.1016/j.mi... #Midwifery #Research #Healthcare

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

Anna Melamed led this comprehensive review of antenatal risk assessment and classification interventions in the UK. The promise of better outcomes from risk management is seductive - but the evidence doesn't stack up. I'm chuffed to have been a member of the writing team. doi.org/10.1016/j.mi...

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

BirthSmallTalk is your reliable guide to the evidence about fetal monitoring (and more). Subscribe to stay on top of the latest research. education.birthsmalltalk.com/newsletter

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

The Easter Bunny is a myth but the idea keeps hopping along... So too does the myth that CTG monitoring saves lives and prevents brain injury. But there's less chocolate involved. #ChocolateNOTCTGs #BunniesForEvidenceBasedMaternityCare #RabbitsAgainstNonsense

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 05/04/2026

Follow for trustworthy and accessible information to support YOUR decision making. #Birth #Pregnancy #Maternity #Midwife #FetalMonitoring

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

How are you spending your time this Easter? I'm hatching plans to overthrow the patriarchy, planting seeds for new research projects, and celebrating new ideas being born into the world. And eating chocolate...

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

I’d love to spend an extended period there to absorb more of that attitude myself!

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

I was very surprised that my usual background anxiety was much lower while I was there - even though changes in routine usually set it off badly. I think it was the ever present hospitality. People were looking out for me all the time. We don’t do this anywhere near as well in Aus.

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

If countries were neurotypes, India would be ADHD. It’s just everything, everywhere, all at once, operating at high speed, as a coherent whole. Noise, colour, movement, smells, tastes - all the things!

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

I was very sad that my last trip through SIN was in the depths of night and it was closed. It’s such a sanctuary for the weary traveller soul.

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

Infuriating. Someone will now come along and say this is proof that women shouldn’t be surgeons in 3, 2, 1…

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

Monitoring Your Baby In Labour is your evidence-based guide to choosing the best fetal monitoring options for your birth. Comment BOOK and I'll send you information about where to get your copy from

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

Let's talk about the history of how CTG use rose to prominence in maternity care. It has something to do with ultrasounds, moon exploration, washing machines, President Kennedy's son, and husbands in birth rooms... birthsmalltalk.com/2026/03/11/s...

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Dr Kirsten Small PhD @birthsmalltalk.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

For a limited time only - you can buy the eBook version of Monitoring Your Baby in Labour for only $0.99! Grab your copy from Amazon / Kindle while you can as the price goes up tomorrow!

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