RCM Opinion

News

• • Maternity Services
  • Midwifery Workforce
  • MSWs - Maternity Support Workers
  • Safety
  • Staffing Levels

Promoting

Addressing the impact of staffing shortages

By Sean O'Sullivan, Head of Health and Social Policy, RCM on 27 October 2022 Earlier this month, the Maternity All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) and the Baby Loss APPG issued a joint calling for urgent action to address staffing shortages in maternity services.

News

• • Maternity Services
  • Midwifery Workforce
  • MSWs - Maternity Support Workers
  • Safety
  • Staffing Levels

Promoting

Maternity services are highlighted as an area of special concern in CQC report

By Tara Kaufman, Policy Advisor, Royal College of Midwives on 21 October 2022 The CQC’s annual report on the state of healthcare in England published today doesn’t pull its punches: “The… system is gridlocked” is its grim opening. It goes on to paint a familiar picture of long waiting times, difficulty accessing primary ...

News

• • Midwives
  • MSWs - Maternity Support Workers
  • Bereavement Care
  • Child Mortality
  • Infant Mortality
  • Miscarriage
  • Neonatal Death
  • Safe Sleep
  • Sands
  • Stillbirth
  • Specialist Midwives

Promoting

Working to reduce baby loss and improve bereavement care

By Heather Bower, RCM Professional Advisor, Midwife on 11 October 2022 The loss of a baby is devastating for every family experiencing such a loss. It is also traumatic for midwives, MSWs and other healthcare professionals caring for families who are going through this experience. Sadly, stillbirth rates are ...

News

• • MSWs - Maternity Support Workers
  • Safety
  • Maternity Safety
  • Diabetes
  • Wellbeing Of Women
  • Women

Promoting

Caring for pregnant with pre-existing and gestational diabetes

By Lisa Grant, specialist diabetes midwife Cwm Taf Morganwg, Wales I always enjoyed acute medical nursing and realised that as a practising midwife I would be able to cross over and enjoy both my favourite health interests within this new role.

News

• • Maternity Safety
  • Politics
  • Government

Promoting

Chancellor’s plans: a threat not a help to the NHS

By Stuart Bonar Public Affairs Advisor Before disappearing off to their party conferences, politicians have been back at Westminster for a couple of days, frantically making announcements in the little time they have. RCM Public Affairs Advisor Stuart Bonar shares what recent ...

News

• • NHS
  • MSWs - Maternity Support Workers
  • Safety
  • Maternity Safety
  • Pay

Promoting

How to stand up for high standards

By Executive Director of Trade Union Suzanne Tyler on 06 September 2022 Standing up for high standards, can sometimes mean speaking out on culture and practices around you, speaking truth to power and sometimes making yourself unpopular. As a member of a trade union, we know it is important for individuals to be ...

News

• • NHS
  • MSWs - Maternity Support Workers
  • Safety
  • Maternity Safety
  • Pay

Promoting

Midwife numbers falling fastest in North of England

By RCM Public Affairs Advisor Stuart Bonar The number of midwives in England's NHS is dropping, and at a quickening pace. This worrying new trend started in the summer of 2021, before which we had never before seen year-on-year falls in midwife numbers. But the drop is not happening equally ...

News

• • NHS
  • MSWs - Maternity Support Workers
  • Safety
  • Maternity Safety
  • Covid-19
  • covid19

Promoting

Asymptomatic testing

By Director of Employment Relations Alice Sorby on 31 August 2022 Following the Government’s announcement to pause asymptomatic testing for COVID, RCM Director of Employment Relations Alice Sorby shares the RCM position along with workplace support and the employer’s legal duty to your health, safety ...

News

• • NHS
  • MSWs - Maternity Support Workers
  • Safety
  • Maternity Safety

Promoting

Listening to midwives, listening to women

By RCM Shared Voices Network chair Emma Taylor on 12 August 2022 The definition of the word listen is ‘to give attention to someone or something in order to hear’. So often in modern life, people listen in order that they can identify when they can speak, regardless of what is being said to them. The true art of ...

News

• • NHS
  • MSWs - Maternity Support Workers
  • Safety
  • Maternity Safety
  • Equality and Diversity
  • LGBT

Promoting

Inclusive language in maternity care to address inequalities

on 11 August 2022 Maternity services should be welcoming and accessible to all those who need them – and all those who work in them. Over recent months, the RCM has been developing its position on inclusion, to ensure that the language we use reflects this. This, ...