Dr Kaat De Backer is a midwife research fellow at the Department of Women and Children’s Health, School of Life Course Sciences at King’s College London. She is an active member of the Maternal Health Policy, Systems and Implementation research group in the Department of Women and Children’s Health.

Kaat’s clinical experience as a specialist perinatal mental health midwife and matron of a mother and baby unit directly informed her research, which focuses on the intersection of maternity, mental health and social care. She completed an NIHR Doctoral Research Fellowship in December 2025, investigating the characteristics, health outcomes and care experiences of women with involvement from children’s social care during pregnancy and early motherhood. She closely collaborated with an advisory panel of women with lived experience of infant removal and was nominated for her contributions to engaged research by the King’s Engaged Research Awards. Her PhD resulted in several peer-reviewed academic publications, media coverage, keynotes at national conferences and informed national guidance in maternity and mental health care.

Kaat supervises students in women’s mental health, health inequalities and maternity care, and teaches on the Perinatal Mental Health module on the IBSc in Women’s Health. She is also a midwifery assessor for the MBRRACE-UK collaborator and has an honorary contract as a midwife at the Rosie Hospital, Cambridge.

Research interests:

• Perinatal mental health
• Integration of maternity and mental health services for women with severe or complex mental health needs
• Transition to parenthood for women with mental health issues

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