School of Nursing & Midwifery

Dr Cathy Fetherston RN, RM , IBCLC
BSc (Human Biol & Health Education, Curtin), Post Grad Dip (Midwifery, Curtin), MSc (Nursing, Curtin), PhD (Biochem, UWA)

Cathy joined Murdoch University School of Nursing in 2007 as a Research Fellow at Peel Health Campus where she was responsible for fostering research and evidence based practice in the clinical setting. She is now a Senior Lecturer at Murdoch School of Nursing & Midwifery where she is Coordinator of the Masters of Midwifery Program and Chair of the Honours Sub-committee. Cathy is currently supervising or co-supervising 8 postgraduate research students from honours to PhD level.

After graduating as a registered nurse in 1978 Cathy worked predominately in the areas of cardiothoracic ICU, coronary care and general surgery, both here in Australia and overseas in Israel and the UK. She then worked as a clinical instructor in specialist surgical areas at Royal Perth and then as a nurse educator and senior nurse educator teaching science, maths and critical care at the Western Australian School of Nursing, before moving to Albany to work in Community Health.  In 1992 Cathy completed a Post Grad Diploma in Midwifery and qualified as an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant. She continues to maintain her clinical practice in lactation and midwifery in addition to her research interests.

She has completed a Masters degree in Nursing from Curtin University and a PhD in Biochemistry from UWA in the area of lactation mastitis, on which she has several publications. In 1996 she received the Mary Paton Research Award, presented by the Australian Breastfeeding Association for the best original paper submitted in the area of breastfeeding. Cathy is also a member of the editorial review board for the national journal Breastfeeding Review, and is a reviewer for several other international journals and publishers including Clinical Endocrinology, Breastfeeding Medicine, British Journal of Nutrition and Elsevier. She has also presented widely in Australia and internationally in the areas of physiology and pathophysiology of the lactating breast and has published 13 papers in referred journals and a book chapter.
In her recent role of Research Fellow she has been involved in a variety of other clinical research including the National Handover Initiative, exercise in renal dialysis patients, autologous retransfusions, and post operative pain management in total knee arthroplasty patients.


Refereed Book Chapter
Fetherston, C. Lee, C.S., & Hartmann, P.E. 2001. Mammary gland defence: The role of colostrum, milk and involution secretion, in: Advances in Nutritional Research, Vol. 10: The Immunological Properties of Milk, edited by W.H. Woodward and H.H. Draper, Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishing Corporation, New York pp 167-200.

Refereed Journal papers
Fetherston, C.M. Lai, C.T. & Hartmann, P.E. 2008. Recurrent blocked ducts in a woman with immunoglobulin A deficiency: A case history. Breastfeeding Medicine 3(4):261-264.
McMurray, A., Chaboyer. W., Wallis, M., & Fetherston, C.  2008. Implementing Bedside Handover: Strategies for Change Management. JCN submitted for publication Oct, 2008.
McMurray, A. Blazey, L. & Fetherston, C. 2008. The effect of intradialytic foot pedal exercise on blood pressure, phosphate removal efficiency and health related quality of life in hemodialysis patients. Renal Soc of Aust J .
Fetherston, C.M. Lai, C.T. & Hartmann, P.E. 2006. Relationships between symptoms and changes in breast physiology during lactation mastitis. Breastfeeding Medicine 1(3) 136-145.
Fetherston, C.M. Wells J.I. & Hartmann, P.E. 2006. Severity of mastitis symptoms as a predictor of C-reactive protein in milk and blood during lactation Breastfeeding Medicine 1(3) 127-135..
Fetherston, C.M. Lai, C.T. Mitoulas, L.R. & Hartmann, P.E. 2006. Excretion of Lactose in Urine as a Measure of Increased Permeability of the Lactating Breast During Inflammation. Acta Obstetrica Gynaecol  85:2025.
Fetherston, C.  2001. Mastitis in lactating women: pathology or physiology? Breastfeeding Review. 9(1): 5-12. reprinted in: MIDIRS. 2002 12(2):235-240.
(Awarded UNICEF paper of the month and the Mary Paton Research Award and for most original lactation research paper)
Fetherston, C. 1998. Risk factors for lactation mastitis. J Hum Lact. 14: 101-109.
Fetherston, C. 1997a. Characteristics of lactation mastitis in a Western Australian cohort. Breastfeeding Review. 5(2): 5-11.
Fetherston C. 1997b Management of lactation mastitis in a Western Australian cohort. Breastfeeding Review. 5(2): 13-19.
Fetherston, C. 1995. Factors influencing breastfeeding initiation and duration in a private Western Australian maternity hospital. Breastfeeding Review. 3(1): 9-14.
Fetherston C. 1995. Breastfeeding twins: two onto one does go: A case study.  Breastfeeding Review. 3(1): 34-35.