Perth obstetrician Margaret Smith, pioneer of women's health, dies at 94

Margaret Smith, celebrated for her dedication to women’s health, died on July 14, her 94th birthday. A 1956 graduate of the University of Adelaide, she overcame early exclusion from obstetrics residencies and, with classmates’ support, secured a placement that launched a career delivering roughly 6,000 babies. After winning a gold-medal postgraduate award in Edinburgh, she spent seven years in Papua New Guinea, serving as obstetrician, physician and anaesthetist, famously delivering triplets.

Back in Perth she worked at King Edward Memorial Hospital, lectured at the University of Western Australia, and established WA’s first menopause clinic in 1978, later bearing her name. Honors included WA Citizen of the Year (1994), Member of the Order of Australia (1996), and induction into the WA Women’s Hall of Fame (2011). Colleagues recalled her as a passionate educator, lifelong lover of music and poetry, and a mentor to countless doctors.