Leisa Freeman, Honorary Consultant in Cardiology, awarded honorary fellowship of the RCOG

Leisa Freeman, Honorary Consultant Cardiologist, has been awarded an honorary fellowship from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) for her contribution to women’s health and in particular maternal cardiology.

Leisa, who retired last October, established an adult congenital heart service at our hospital in 1993.

NHS England in 2018 approved NNUH as a Specialist Congenital Cardiac Centre, one of only four in England.

Leisa established annual courses for heart conditions and pregnancy aimed at trainee cardiologists, obstetricians and obstetric anaesthetists and was a speaker at national and international pregnancy and heart disease meetings.

Together with Katherine Stanley, former Maternal Medicine Lead, in 1997 Leisa started a joint service to look after pregnant women with congenital heart conditions. The service rapidly expanded to look after patients with congenital and acquired heart conditions from across the East of England.

The demand for the service saw the joint Obstetric Cardiology Clinic occurring every other week with Obstetricians Fran Harlow, Alasdair Mckelvey and Jon Lartey.

“It is a great honour to receive this Fellowship which is rarely awarded to healthcare professionals working outside women’s health,” said Leisa.

“I’m proud of having established a new service which is continuing after my retirement under the lead of Cathy Head, Consultant Cardiologist, who recently set up the UK Maternal Cardiology Society.”

Eddie Morris, Consultant in Obstetrics and Gynaecology and RCOG President, said: “This is a thoroughly well-deserved fellowship for Leisa who has worked tirelessly throughout her career in the interests of women with heart diseases.

“Her work, with the wider Maternity team, has undoubtedly helped women of Norfolk and Suffolk to have safe pregnancies when in the past their condition meant many thought pregnancy would be impossible.”

Pictured from left: Eddie Morris, President of RCOG; Fran Harlow, Maternal Medicine Lead; Leisa Freeman, Honorary Consultant Cardiologist; Alasdair Mckelvey, Obstetrician and regional EoE representative on council RCOG