Fiona Denison Explained

Fiona Charlotte Denison^[1] (1970 – 9 January 2022) was a Scottish doctor and academic. She was the Professor and Honorary Consultant in Maternal and Fetal Medicine at the University of Edinburgh,^[2] founder of Birthing Solutions Ltd, and creator of the Birth Mirror.^[3]

Life and career

Denison was born in Morningside, Edinburgh, Midlothian, in 1970.^[4] She was a consultant obstetrician and reader in Maternal and Fetal Health at the Medical Research Council (MRC) Centre for Reproductive Health.^[5] She was a principal investigator for The Edinburgh Tommy's Centre for Maternal and Fetal Health, a research centre focusing on maternal obesity which sits within the MRC Centre for Reproductive Health.^[6]

In 2011, Denison was awarded a research grant from Action Medical Research for £96,450 to investigate new imaging techniques to predict pregnancy complications.^[7]

Denison died in Edinburgh on 9 January 2022, at the age of 51.^{[8] [9] [10]} She died by suicide after contracting COVID-19 for the second time, which deteriorated her health.^[11]

Awards and honours

In 2017, Denison won a number of awards for her Birth Mirror, an adjustable, waterproof mirror to assist midwives in water births:

• The Converge Challenge KickStart Digital Entrepreneur Award.^{[12] [13]}
• Shortlisted as a semi-finalist in the Scottish EDGE11 WildCard Award finalist,^[14] awarded £10,000.^[15]
• The Medicity DEVELOP prize for customer discovery.
• The Medicity DEVELOP Engage Invest Exploit Prize.
• The Medicity DEVELOP runner-up Prize.

Denison was a finalist in the 2013 NHS Lothian Health Hero awards, nominated by one of her patients for Denison's concern for patient wellbeing.^[16]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Glycerine Trinitrate for Retained Placenta (GOT-IT Trial) . NHS Health Research Authority . 10 January 2022.
2. News: Professor Fiona Denison. The University of Edinburgh. 26 March 2019. en.
3. News: Celebrating enterprising women – Edinburgh Innovation. 8 March 2018. Edinburgh Innovation. 8 March 2018. en-US.
4. Web site: Denison, Fiona Charlotte . Scotland's People . 10 January 2022 . 12 November 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201112013430/https://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/record-results?search_type=People&surname=Denison&forename=Fiona&forename_so=starts&from_year=&to_year=&surname_so=exact&record_type=stat_births . dead .
5. News: Dr Denison's birth mirror on track for further success. The University of Edinburgh. 8 March 2018. en.
6. News: Edinburgh Tommys Centre. The University of Edinburgh. 9 March 2018. en.
7. News: Grant winners. 27 October 2011. The Times Higher Education Supplement. 12 March 2018.
8. Web site: Tributes paid to renowned Scottish doctor after 'long battle' with Covid -19. 10 January 2022. HeraldScotland. 10 January 2022 . en.
9. News: Carroll . Ryan . Scots professor dies after Covid battle as family pay tribute to 'kind' academic . 10 January 2022 . Daily Record . 10 January 2022.
10. Web site: Leading Scots doctor took her own life after Covid 'devastated' her health. 2022-01-14. HeraldScotland. 13 January 2022 . en.
11. Web site: Scots doctor Fiona Denison took her own life after Covid 'devastated' her health. HeraldScotland. 13 January 2022 . en.
12. News: Dr Fiona Denison's Birth Mirror reaches the final of the Converge Challenge KickStart Awards. The University of Edinburgh. 9 March 2018. en.
13. News: Dave Hughes of the University of the West of Scotland wins Converge Challenge 2017. Symon. Ken. 29 September 2017. businessInsider. 12 March 2018.
14. News: Further coverage for CRH's Fiona Denison and her award winning product. The University of Edinburgh. 9 March 2018. en.
15. News: Birthing Solutions awarded £10k at EDGE 11 as wilcard finalist. 18 December 2017. BioCity. 12 March 2018. en-GB.
16. News: Health Hero awards: Four women named candidates. Edinburgh Evening News. 12 March 2018. en.