Protecting Beginnings: Reflections from UKIMS 2026

At first, this was through clinical work: I was responsible for the liaison service in a hospital with a NICU, supporting families - especially mothers and babies - through some profoundly difficult situations. More recently, I’ve been involved as a researcher in projects related to the perinatal period, including the MiBirth Study, which explores what factors shape mode of delivery and how that, in turn, relates to a wide range of outcomes. This past February, I was invited to present some of the study’s findings at the Marce Society’s UKIMS Conference in London.

2026 wasn’t my first time at the UKIMS Conference. I was lucky enough to attend as a delegate two years ago, and even then, it stood out to me as quite different from other congresses I’ve been to in recent years. While the scientific quality is on par with any major conference, the atmosphere feels notably warmer and more personal - and, importantly, the talks tend to translate directly into clinical practice in a way that feels immediate and genuinely useful. This year, that sense of relevance felt at its peak (though I’ll admit that may be subjective: I’m currently pregnant with my first baby).

Throughout the day, speakers delivered a series of thoughtful and highly relevant presentations across a wide range of topics.

Some focused on aspects of pregnancy that have historically been overlooked, yet carry profound implications. Dr Hamilton Morrin presented fascinating data on hyperemesis gravidarum (did you know it appears to correlate with a broad spectrum of postnatal mental health outcomes, ranging from a lower risk of postnatal depression to a higher likelihood of antipsychotic prescription?). Alyssa Despotis, meanwhile, explored how concerns about labour are rarely “just worries”; they can leave lasting imprints on a woman’s psychological wellbeing.

Other talks examined the bidirectional relationship between severe mental illness and the perinatal period. Dr Gabriella Lewis discussed the long-term outcomes of postnatal psychosis, while Jenny Gong presented an excellent talk on birth outcomes among women with pre-existing mental health difficulties.

Pregnancy and childbirth are, at their core, profoundly social experiences, and that cuts both ways. Dr Billie Lever Taylor presented a compelling study on the often-overlooked mothers we are failing to reach: women who give birth while involved in care proceedings. Dr Juan Chart Pascual highlighted how societal narratives do not always align with clinical or research priorities, sharing a thought-provoking analysis of public discourse on perinatal mental health across social media platforms.

And then came the proposals; large, ambitious, and much-needed efforts to address perinatal mental health challenges. Madeleine Kirkpatrick presented the impressive SNAPER-PND study, while Professor Colette Hirsch shared innovative work on digital interventions targeting perinatal anxiety.

And yet, of all the presentations we attended at the conference, the one that left the deepest impression on me was delivered by Yafa Ajweh, who shared part of the work carried out by the Gaza Infant Nutrition Alliance (GINA) through its “Digital Villages of Care” initiative. Yafa spoke about circumstances of almost unimaginable hardship - settings in which no mother or family should ever be forced to give birth or raise a baby. But her talk was also about agency, about solidarity, and about the tangible ways in which we can contribute to easing suffering, even in the most extreme contexts. She showed how perinatal care - often perceived as something fragile or secondary in crisis - can instead become a powerful, grounding intervention. As one of the mothers supported by GINA shared: “When I breastfeed, I forget there’s war outside.”

In many ways, I thought that quote captures what I took home from UKIMS this year: the perinatal period is not only a time of vulnerability, but also a window of extraordinary potential. It is where biology, relationships, services, inequality, policy, and culture collide - and where small, well-placed interventions can have disproportionately large effects.