Denise Smith, Ph.D., CNM, FACNM, FAAN
Assistant Professor
University of Colorado Anschutz College of Nursing
Colorado
At time of Fellowship
Denise C. Smith is an Associate Professor with tenure at the University of Colorado Anschutz College of Nursing, where she is a researcher, clinician, educator, and leader in midwifery and maternal health services research. A certified nurse-midwife with three decades of nursing and midwifery experience, her work bridges clinical practice, health systems research, workforce development, and health policy. Her scholarship focuses on improving maternal health outcomes, access to care, interprofessional collaboration, and the integration of midwifery care within health systems. She is a Fellow of the American College of Nurse-Midwives and the American Academy of Nursing.
Dr. Smith has served in academic, clinical, military, and healthcare leadership roles. She currently teaches in doctoral and graduate nursing programs and maintains an active clinical practice at the University of Colorado Hospital as a certified nurse-midwife. Her previous leadership positions include Specialty Director of the CU Nurse-Midwifery Education Program. She served as a nurse corps officer in both the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy Reserve. As a researcher, she has led and collaborated on federal and state-funded projects addressing maternity care access, rural workforce expansion, respectful maternity care, telehealth, and birth outcomes. Her body of peer-reviewed scholarship has contributed significantly to the evidence base supporting midwifery-led care, maternal health access and quality, and collaborative models of care.
Dr. Smith earned her PhD from the University of Colorado Anschutz, a Master of Science in Nursing with a concentration in Nurse-Midwifery from East Carolina University in 2007, a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Georgia Southern University in 1997, and undergraduate studies in Political Science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Smith is dedicated to advancing midwifery education, maternal health workforce development, and health services research that supports quality and access to care.