Mary Hepburn

Early life

Mary Hepburn was born in 1949 in Hackney, London. Her father was General Practitioner and mother a linguist. She was raised in Walls in the west of Shetland.

Career

In 1990 she established the Glasgow Women's Reproductive Health Services to provide specialist support for mothers-to-be with drug and alcohol addictions, HIV, mental illness or experiencing homelessness, domestic abuse or rape. This multi-disciplinary service grew more than tenfold in three years, going from 12 patients in its first year to more than 130 in the third. The clinic is part of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and is now known as the Special Needs in Pregnancy Service (Snips). As of 2016, around 300 women a year attend the clinic. Hepburn led the service for more than 25 years and the guidelines used by the clinic are now an internationally recognised way of treating socially disadvantaged mothers-to-be. They are now used across the UK and the world.

Hepburn was a senior lecturer in women's reproductive health at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary.

Hepburn has also worked with the United Nations Children’s Fund, the World Health Organisation and Amnesty International, putting in place similar services and support for women around the world.

Awards

• 2007, lifetime achievement award from the domestic violence organisation Zero Tolerance.
• 2012, named Scotswoman of the Year by the Evening Times newspaper.