Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s 16 Days guest blog
Domestic abuse is fundamentally a public health issue, with wide ranging and well documented impacts on the mental and physical health of adult and child survivors. Healthcare settings provide a unique opportunity for professionals to intervene in domestic abuse, with research showing that survivors interact more with healthcare than other statutory agency. It is estimated […]
Invest to address: Eradicating inequality has to be a priority
Back in 2023 the RCM worked with a wide range of stakeholders to develop and launch its Decolonising midwifery education toolkit which aims to empower midwifery educators to challenge the legacies of colonial perspectives in all aspects of midwifery education. The toolkit is an important first step in ensuring that future midwives can practise with […]
Mission control: what do the PM’s new missions tell us about the direction of health?
Today [5 December 2024] Prime Minister Keir Starmer and the Cabinet decamped to Pinewood Studios, home to James Bond and ‘Would I Lie to You?’, to launch the ‘Plan for Change’, an attempt to inject new purpose into the Government after a sometimes shaky first five months in power. Fixing the NHS is one of […]
Who wants to be a midwife? Reversing the concerning decline in midwifery applicants
Over the past few years, there has been a worrying drop in the number of people applying to midwifery courses in the UK. In fact, applicants for 2024 are down 10% from last year and is the lowest number of applicants we’ve seen in the last six years. Alongside this, this week we received figures […]
How routine pulse oximetry testing supports decolonising practice
Routine Pulse Oximetry Testing for Newborn Babies has been published by the British Association for Perinatal Medicine (BAPM) in partnership with expert stakeholders including the Royal College of Midwives’ fellow and Principal Educator for NHS Education for Scotland, Dr Tom McEwan. The framework aligns with the RCM recommendations for decolonising practice which reasserts the NHS […]
No shame, no stigma, only support
As midwives and MSWs, we spend our working lives supporting the women in our care. Not only that, but most of the people we work alongside are also women. Think about all those women – hundreds, probably thousands of them – that cross our paths. And now consider that the recent crime survey for England […]
Being valued and adding value: Celebrating MSWs on MSW Day – and every day
MSW Day always provides me with an opportunity to reflect on the year that has passed and all that been achieved by maternity support workers and for maternity support workers (MSWs). This year I have been involved in some wonderful events which have celebrated the successes of RCM members and where MSWs have very much […]
Value for money
In her Budget statement yesterday, the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, announced that the Scottish Government will receive the largest real time funding settlement in the history of devolution. The most important part of that announcement for midwives and maternity care assistants in Scotland is that this increase is aimed at ensuring that Scotland can ‘deliver the […]
A weighty Budget speech – but is the focus ambitious enough
It has been four months since the election. It has been a long wait for Labour’s first Budget since 2010. But when she finally stood up to deliver it, Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, delivered a weighty Budget speech. She plans to put up taxes by £40 billion to fund substantial extra investment […]
Explaining Scotland’s workforce policies and what they mean for you
Ensuring our members have optimum, fair and current terms and conditions are key aspects of our work and core to the day-to-day role of our team in Scotland. But what are the “Once for Scotland” Workforce Policies and what do they mean for you? Knowing what policies exist and how they are set out enables […]