Abderhalden Alessia

Alessia Abderhalden is a Researcher at the Western Switzerland University of Applied Sciences, School of Health Sciences (HESAV) in Lausanne, Switzerland. She is affiliated with the Faculty of Health and primarily contributes to the Midwifery program. Her institutional contact shows her office at BM21-T/02/204 with email alessia.abderhalden@hesav.ch.

Dr. Abderhalden's research interests prominently feature Health Psychology, Perinatal Health, and Maternity Protection at Work. She specializes in Quality of Care assessment and employs both Qualitative Research methodologies and Mixed-Methods Research approaches. Her work consistently addresses the intersection between pregnancy, workplace safety, and healthcare systems, with particular attention to policy implementation challenges and user experiences across different contexts.

Her publication portfolio demonstrates a strong focus on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on maternal care services across Europe through the IMAgiNE EURO project. She has conducted significant research on maternity protection legislation in Switzerland, evaluating specialized occupational medicine consultations for pregnant workers, and analyzing factors affecting return to work during pregnancy. Her work consistently identifies gaps in respectful maternity care, workplace adaptations for pregnant employees, and implementation challenges of protective legislation.

Dr. Abderhalden actively collaborates on multiple research projects with substantial funding. She serves as Co-applicant on 'Les compétences professionnelles à l'épreuve du réel' (2024-2025, 80,062 CHF), as Collaborator on 'Evaluation of the impact of Cytomegalovirus infection' (2024-2027, 479,699 CHF), and contributes to the multinational IMAgiNE EURO project. She has secured funding from the Swiss National Science Foundation and other sources for her research initiatives.

Her research team frequently includes colleagues Claire de Labrusse and Anouck Pfund, with whom she has co-authored multiple publications. She works closely with the Swiss Midwives Association and various healthcare institutions across Switzerland to translate research findings into practical applications for improving maternity care and workplace safety for pregnant employees.