Maria Dore, Head of Midwifery, Princess Anne Hospital, Southampton

Maria qualified as a midwife in 1987 and she has worked as a midwife in a variety of areas including neonates, parent education, clinical midwifery and in a Sure Start mainstreaming project team before moving into midwifery management. In February 2007 she was appointed into her current role as Head of Midwifery at Southampton University Hospitals Trust.

Her professional leadership has been influenced by her experiences of working in the variety of roles she has undertaken throughout her career as well being a mother of two children and married for 28 years. She is also a Governor within a large secondary school in Hampshire.

She has a genuine interest in supporting midwives to deliver a safe, confident and caring service to women and their families. Maria acknowledges the challenges that are faced by midwives, advocating for the provision of quality midwifery care on a daily basis and actively seeks opportunities that will help to secure and raise the profile of the midwife.