Karen qualified as a Nurse in 1986 and then as a Midwife in 1988 in Cardiff. Her midwifery career has seen her work across hospital and community settings, setting up a continuity ‘Changing Childbirth’ team, initiating the first substance misuse midwifery post in Wales and addressing the need for bereavement services to support families.

Karen joined Welsh Government in November 2016. In her role as the first Chief Midwifery officer for Wales, she leads policy on Maternity, Neonatal care and Breastfeeding, linking with both the women’s health and Early years agendas.

Since her time in Government, she has led on the future Maternity Vision for Wales, Clinical Supervision for Midwifery framework and the Breastfeeding action plan. More recently she has driven policy change including the Maternity and Neonatal safety support programme, a review of the Birth-rate plus acuity tool and the Digital Maternity Cymru programme.