Fiona McIntosh has been a qualified Nurse and is a qualified Midwife completing all her studies in Glasgow, Scotland. She is a registered member of the Royal Colleges of Nursing and Midwifery in the UK and Greece. As a qualified Midwife, her professional positions were initially held at one of the busiest hospitals in London. During her ten years at this hospital, she progressively achieved promotions, which included the post of Sister Midwife, (co-ordinating Midwife for Labour Ward). Responsibilities included managing the labour ward, organising teams of midwives to conduct physiological births and high risk cases and creating and improving protocols/guidelines for the ongoing improvement and safety of mothers and their babies. Later on, as a side-ward step, she undertook the post of co-ordinating Midwife serving the community. This position included, together with a team of Midwives, preparing couples for a homebirth and waterbirth experience. Emphasis was placed on how to optimise the chances to giving birth naturally at home, by utilising movement, alternative positions, relaxation/visualization and alternative therapies. Throughout this time, she completed her post graduate studies in Advanced Midwifery Studies, at the South Bank University.
During her final years at the Royal Free Hospital she achieved promotion to Clinical Midwifery Manager. In 1999 Fiona transferred to St John’s and St Elizabeth Hospital, Birth Unit. The Birth Unit is a famous, private unit, which offers a unique service to women who are looking for a more supportive and holistic approach to the birth of their child. The Unit philosophy focuses on a low intervention method of care. With the team of Senior Midwives, Fiona offered these women the full scope of Midwifery care aimed at supporting them to achieve a natural or waterbirth experience. Also in this role, she also held the position of Supervisor of Midwives. This role involved the monitoring and facilitating excellence in professional Midwifery practice, and creating and updating guidelines/protocols to maintain and improve safe delivery of client care.
Fiona moved to Athens, Greece in early 2004 and together with her husband, Michael Lazanakis, they set up their Obstetric practice. Using her varied experience from the UK, Fiona now applies the above mentioned philosophies of care here in Athens. In partnership with Michael Lazanakis, Fiona follows all their clients throughout their pregnancies. Included in the client’s antenatal care, Fiona offers couples’ preparation for birth’ classes and a breastfeeding workshop, and general advise on the care of their babies in the immediate first few weeks after birth. Afterwards during a client’s stay in hospital, she will attend to offer advise and support for infant care and feeding. Fiona is also a mother of two children.