PhD, Marquette University
MSN, Case Western Reserve University
CNM, Frontier School of Midwifery and Family Nursing
BSN, Montana State University
Osborne is a certified nurse-midwife who began her nursing career in 1980 after graduating from Montana State University with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. In 1993 she graduated from the Frontier School of Midwifery and Family Nursing, was certified by the American Midwifery Certification Board and began working as a certified nurse-midwife. She graduated from Case Western Reserve University in 1995 with a Master of Science in Nursing.
Osborne worked in full scope nurse-midwifery practice for over 15 years, primarily providing care for women living in the inner-city of Milwaukee, WI. She began teaching on the faculty of the Frontier School of Midwifery and Family Nursing (now Frontier Nursing University) in 1996. In 2010 she graduated from Marquette University with a PhD in Nursing; her dissertation research focused on the care of women during the second stage of labor.
She joined the College of Nursing faculty at Rush University in 2014. Osborne’s scholarly work has focused primarily on health policy, particularly the regulation of advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs). She has participated extensively in advocacy work aimed at establishing state regulatory frameworks that allow full practice authority for APRNs.
She is actively involved with the American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM) where she has held several leadership positions. In 2012 she was inducted as an ACNM Fellow. Osborne has had multiple publications in the areas of health policy, health promotion, and preventive health services. She also serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health.
Fellow, American College of Nurse-Midwives, 2012
Peer Reviewer of the Year, Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health, 2009
Best Poster Presentation of Research - American College of Nurse-Midwives Annual Meeting, 2008
2017 Daisy Award – Rush University College of Nursing
Regional Award for Excellence, American College of Nurse-Midwives, 2007
Speaking Engagements
July, 2015, Advanced Advocacy to Increase Awareness of and Access to Midwifery Care. ACNM Annual Meeting, Washington D.C. Podium presentation.
May, 2014, Care and Feeding of the Late Preterm Infant: Overcoming Challenges to Breastfeeding, ACNM Annual Meeting, Denver, CO. Podium presentation by Kathryn Osborne and Janet Engstrom.
May, 2014, Our Window of Opportunity: Advanced Political Action and Advocacy for Midwives, ACNM Annual Meeting, Denver, CO. Podium presentation.
May, 2013, Working With Lobbyists and Coalitions to Change Health Policy, ACNM Annual Meeting, Nashville, TN. Invited Podium Presentation.
King, T.L., Brucker, M.C., Osborne, K., and Jevitt, C.M. (2019). Varney’s midwifery (6th ed.). Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett.
Osborne, K. (2017). Regulation of controlled substance prescribing: An overview for certified nurse-midwives and certified midwives. Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health, 62 (3), 341-347.
Osborne, K. (2015). Regulation of prescriptive authority for certified nurse-midwives and certified midwives: 2015 National Overview. Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health, 60(5), 519-533.
Osborne, K. (2015). Engaging in health policy: There’s no time like the present. Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health, 60(5), 477-478.
Osborne, K. & Hanson, L. (2014). Labor down or bear down: A strategy to translate second stage labor evidence to perinatal practice. Journal of Perinatal and Neonatal Nursing, 28(2), 117-126.