Presentor
Dr Rosemary Listing
Dr Rosemary Listing is a lawyer, academic, and health law specialist based in Newcastle, NSW, with a PhD in medical negligence and over a decade of experience in injury cases. Her work focuses on supporting women following difficult or traumatic birth experiences, including cases arising from both public and private maternity care. Rosemary regularly works with women in the postpartum period who are seeking to understand what happened during their birth, why it continues to affect them, and what options—legal or otherwise—are available. She brings a trauma-informed, respectful approach to legal education and works closely with those who support women, including doulas and birth workers. Her focus is on clarity, validation, and empowerment, helping women and their supporters make sense of complex experiences without fear, blame, or pressure.
After the System Moves On:
Postpartum Support Following Traumatic Birth
Many doulas are now working primarily in the postpartum space, supporting women who are living with the emotional, physical, and psychological aftermath of difficult or traumatic births. These experiences occur across both public and private hospital systems, and many women are seeking different forms of support from doulas because what they have received so far has not helped them understand, process, or resolve what happened. This session recognises the unique position doulas occupy after birth—when women begin asking deeper questions about consent, communication, intervention, and harm. Dr Rosemary Listing draws on her work in birth trauma and medical negligence to help doulas understand how women’s prior birth experiences intersect with legal frameworks. The presentation explores: Why many women seek new forms of support after negative birth experiences How postpartum distress often relates to unanswered questions about prior care and decision-making What a legal pathway looks like for women who want clarity or accountability How doulas can support women compassionately and safely when legal questions arise This session is designed to validate the role doulas already play in postpartum care, and to provide clarity and language that helps them support women without carrying the weight of fixing the system or knowing all the answers.