Dr Carlien van Heerden is a Neonatal Nurse Specialist, Medico-Legal Neonatal Nursing Expert, Neonatal Consultant, Quality improvement Specialist and Medical Negligence and Health Sector Mediator with her own consultancy practice, Neonatus Consultancies based in Pretoria.

She graduated from the University of Pretoria with a BCur degree in Nursing Science (Cum Laude) in 2001. She completed her Master’s degree in Advanced Neonatal Nursing Science Cum Laude in 2004 at the University of Pretoria, for which she received the award for outstanding academic achievement. She also completed Nursing Education in 2005. After working in practice, she was a part-time lecturer at the Nursing Department of the University of Pretoria, teaching Advanced Neonatal Nursing Science until 2010 for post basic students. Dr Carlien van Heerden obtained her PhD from the University of Pretoria in 2015, of which the focus was on quality improvement. She continued with her Post-doctoral fellowship in 2016 also at the University of Pretoria. She was a Mentor for the Maternal and Child Health Leadership Academy of Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI) Honour Society of Nursing, African Cohort (2016/2017). She also completed the Foundations of Medical-Legal Practice Course presented by the South African Medico-Legal Association (SAMLA) and University of Cape Town in 2018. She also qualified as a Medical Negligence and Health Sector Mediator in 2019.

Dr Carlien van Heerden is a Master Trainer of the Helping Babies Breathe program. She is a board member of the Neonatal Nurses Association of Southern Africa (NNASA) and Chair of their Gauteng Branch. She is a member of the Sigma Theta Tau International Honour Society of Nursing, Child Healthcare Information for All and the South African Medico-Legal Association.

Dr Carlien van Heerden has presented at various international and national conferences and has published in national and international scientific journals.

Her passion is to contribute towards sustainable quality improvement in neonatal nursing care, and to furnish medico-legal expert and merit reports that are ethical, professional, logical and comprehensive. She has a special interest in Medical-Negligence and Health Sector Mediation as an alternative dispute resolution.