A/Prof Stefan C. Kane
MATERNAL FETAL MEDICINE OBSTETRICIAN
MBBS BA BMedSc PhD FRANZCOG CMFM DDU (O&G)
A/Prof Stefan Kane is a maternal fetal medicine (MFM) subspecialist obstetrician based in Parkville, preferentially providing care at Frances Perry House. He is committed to providing compassionate, evidence-based, holistic care before, during and after pregnancy to women and their families, regardless of level of risk. Stefan firmly believes that optimal pregnancy outcomes can only be achieved with a therapeutic relationship underpinned by trust, honesty and openness, and strives to achieve this for every patient in his care.
Qualifications held by Stefan include bachelors degrees in Medicine/Surgery, Medical Science and Arts from the University of Melbourne, Fellowship of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG), Certification in Maternal Fetal Medicine from RANZCOG, and the Diploma of Diagnostic Ultrasound from the Australasian Society for Ultrasound in Medicine. He was awarded a PhD from the University of Melbourne in 2022 for his research into the maternal cerebral effects of preeclampsia.
Stefan has the privilege of serving as the Medical Director of Maternity Services at the Royal Women’s Hospital, Melbourne, where he is also Acting Director of the Department of Maternal Fetal Medicine. His public clinical engagements cover the spectrum of high pregnancy care, and include preterm birth prevention, multiple pregnancy, fetal medicine, maternal medical disorders in pregnancy, and complex labour ward care. He also performs tertiary-level fetal and gynaecological ultrasound in both private and public settings.
Stefan is actively engaged in teaching at all levels, from medical students to advanced specialist trainees, and holds an honorary position as a Clinical Associate Professor in the University of Melbourne Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Further details on his professional roles and research endeavours are included under the tabs below.
Married with four children, family life happily consumes most of Stefan’s time outside work, but he also enjoys running, classical music/opera, and exploring Melbourne’s array of dining establishments.
- Medical Director of Maternity Services and Acting Director of the Department of Maternal Fetal Medicine, The Royal Women’s Hospital, Melbourne
- Consultant Sonologist at Western Imaging for Women
- Consultant Obstetrician, Paediatric Infant Perinatal Emergency Retrieval Service (PIPER), The Royal Children’s Hospital
- Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Newborn Health, The University of Melbourne
- Member of the Melbourne Medical School Academy of Clinical Teachers
- Clinical Lead for Preterm Birth, Safer Care Victoria
- Member of the Maternity and Neonatal Learning Health Network, Safer Care Victoria
- Member of the Neonatal Subcommittee of the Consultative Council on Obstetric and Paediatric Mortality and Morbidity
- President of the Society of Obstetric Medicine of Australia and New Zealand
- Accreditation team leader for intern training in Victoria (with the Postgraduate Medical Council of Victoria) and Queensland (with Prevocational Medical Accreditation Queensland)
Stefan’s primary research focus is the maternal neurological effects of pre-eclampsia. His PhD research project evaluated the potential utility of maternal ophthalmic ultrasound in assessing changes in the cerebrovasculature and intracranial pressure of pre-eclamptic women. In pursuing this higher degree, Stefan has been awarded:
- a Postgraduate Scholarship from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)
- an Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship
- the RANZCOG Fellows’ Clinical Research Scholarship from the Research Foundation of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (2015), and
- a Research Grant from the Australasian Society for Ultrasound in Medicine (2015).
Other research interests include structural and genetic fetal anomalies, red blood cell alloimmunisation, preterm birth prevention, early pregnancy prediction of later complications, and models of maternity care. He has published over 50 peer-reviewed papers and two book chapters on these topics.
Stefan is currently one of the chief investigators on the MRFF-funded MAGNOLIA trial, which aims to establish whether caseload midwifery care can reduce the preterm birth rate among disadvantaged women, and the GEM study, which will assess the impact of group antenatal care and education on subsequent mode of birth.
Please click on the links below to learn more about the research projects Stefan has undertaken.
Professional Roles
- Medical Director of Maternity Services and Acting Director of the Department of Maternal Fetal Medicine, The Royal Women’s Hospital, Melbourne
- Consultant Sonologist at Western Imaging for Women
- Consultant Obstetrician, Paediatric Infant Perinatal Emergency Retrieval Service (PIPER), The Royal Children’s Hospital
- Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Newborn Health, The University of Melbourne
- Member of the Melbourne Medical School Academy of Clinical Teachers
- Clinical Lead for Preterm Birth, Safer Care Victoria
- Member of the Maternity and Neonatal Learning Health Network, Safer Care Victoria
- Member of the Neonatal Subcommittee of the Consultative Council on Obstetric and Paediatric Mortality and Morbidity
- President of the Society of Obstetric Medicine of Australia and New Zealand
- Accreditation team leader for intern training in Victoria (with the Postgraduate Medical Council of Victoria) and Queensland (with Prevocational Medical Accreditation Queensland)
Research
Stefan’s primary research focus is the maternal neurological effects of pre-eclampsia. His PhD research project evaluated the potential utility of maternal ophthalmic ultrasound in assessing changes in the cerebrovasculature and intracranial pressure of pre-eclamptic women. In pursuing this higher degree, Stefan has been awarded:
- a Postgraduate Scholarship from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)
- an Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship
- the RANZCOG Fellows’ Clinical Research Scholarship from the Research Foundation of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (2015), and
- a Research Grant from the Australasian Society for Ultrasound in Medicine (2015).
Other research interests include structural and genetic fetal anomalies, red blood cell alloimmunisation, preterm birth prevention, early pregnancy prediction of later complications, and models of maternity care. He has published over 50 peer-reviewed papers and two book chapters on these topics.
Stefan is currently one of the chief investigators on the MRFF-funded MAGNOLIA trial, which aims to establish whether caseload midwifery care can reduce the preterm birth rate among disadvantaged women, and the GEM study, which will assess the impact of group antenatal care and education on subsequent mode of birth.
Please click on the links below to learn more about the research projects Stefan has undertaken.
