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Health, Safety and wellbeing

We know that maternity care is an incredible but demanding job. Our personal and working life can affect our mental and physical health and it can be difficult to address our wellbeing when we’re not sure where to turn for help. This section of the website is dedicated to sharing useful resources that are available to you.

This content is for RCM Members only

RCM Professionals - Health & Safety

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Physical and mental wellbeing

The RCM is a member of The NHS Staff Council’s Health, Safety and Wellbeing Partnership Group (HSWPG) which works to raise standards of workplace health, safety, and wellbeing, promote a safer working environment and promote best practice.

Poor physical and mental wellbeing can make it difficult to cope with daily life and it is not always easy to pinpoint why we feel the way we do. These tabs contain links to some useful organisations and resources out there to help you take that first step of addressing health concerns and how it impacts you at work.

Useful resources

NHS Employers have provided clear guidance on emotional wellbeing at work which you can use to check what support should be available to you in the workplace and learn about steps you can take to improve or maintain your current mental health. 

NHS England have also developed a health and wellbeing framework to help organisations to identify the health and wellbeing needs of staff, plan and deliver appropriate support and interventions, and evaluate their impact.

Explore five steps you can take to support your wellbeing in this research developed by the New Economics Foundation and learn how your mental health can be improved.

This toolkit from Mental Health at Work aims to support the wellbeing of healthcare workers

The RCM have also produced publications for workers who are working with menopause, are pregnant at work and breastfeeding at work. 

There are over 100 courses available on i-Learn, with a wide selection that can support you in improving health, safety and wellbeing at work.

Helpful charities

AfterTrauma

Providing support for people with complex physical needs

Alzheimer’s Society

information on dementia and helpline

Anxiety UK

providing support with anxiety conditions

Beat

offering support for people with eating disorders

Bipolar UK

helping people living with bipolar disorder

Cruse Bereavement Care

offering bereavement care

Leonard Cheshire

helping people live, learn and work with disabilities

Mental Health Foundation

information and support for anyone with mental wellbeing problems or learning difficulties

Mind

promotes views and needs of people with mental wellbeing problems

No Panic

offering support for sufferers of panic attacks and OCD

OCD Action

supports people with obsessive compulsive disorder

PAPYRUS

young suicide prevention society

Rethink Mental Illness

support and advice for people living with mental illness

Samaritans

support for people experiencing feelings of distress or despair

Addiction related charities

Alcoholics Anonymous

a self-help group with a 12 step programme

Gamblers Anonymous

a self-help programme for people with a gambling addiction

Rehab 4 Addiction

a UK-based addiction and mental health helpline.

Drinkline

a confidential helpline for people worried about their own or someone else’s drinking

SMART Recovery UK

support to decide whether there is a problem with alcohol or drugs

Narcotics Anonymous

a self-help programme for drug use

Gender based support charities

Young Women’s Trust

advice and support for women and girls 16 to 30

Women’s Aid

supporting women experiencing domestic abuse and violence

Refuge

support for women who experience domestic violence and abuse

National Domestic Abuse Helpline

helping those affected by domestic abuse

Maya Centre

counselling for women experiencing mental health issues and traumatic experiences

Men’s health guidance

created to support men and those who identify as men in the workplace

Charities supporting people from the global majority

Black Minds Matter UK

ensuring black people in the UK have access to mental health support

Imkaan

addressing wellbeing of black and minority ethnic women and girls

Muslim Women’s Network UK

giving Muslim women support and a voice in the UK

Savera UK

supporting black and minority ethnic communities in the UK

The Black, African and Asian Therapy Network

offering therapists of black, African, South Asian and Caribbean descent

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Bullying and harassment

Bullying and harassment at work is unacceptable, and yet those of us who experience it are often made to feel it’s our fault. Don’t be ashamed to tell people what’s going on – others may be experiencing it too. There are many ways to help stop bullying behaviour at work and a lot of paths you can take. We know it can be difficult to raise issues about people you work with, but your local RCM reps, with the support of their national or regional officer, are there to help you.

Supportive and compassionate working environments matter. Staff feel valued and listed to, that they can raise concerns, errors are reduced, stress is reduced, and safety improves. Here is some useful information from Civility Saves Lives

We have also produced a toolkit on bullying in the workplace in collaboration with the The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

Race Matters

Tackling racism is a challenge with many layers and complexities. We know that global majority maternity service workers experience differential treatment at work. Inclusion is about experience in the workplace and the wider society where you feel valued and included. We have produced a range of publications that aim to tackle prejudice and promote equality and diversity.

Find out more on our Race Matters initiative here.

Charities supporting people from the global majority

We define domestic abuse as an incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive, threatening, degrading and violent behaviour, including sexual violence, in the majority of cases by a partner or ex-partner, but also by a family member or carer.

The RCM and Cavell Nurses’ Trust have set up the Benevolent Fund to support midwives and maternity support workers (MSWs) who are facing domestic abuse or coercive control and needing to flee. Apply for the Benevolent Fund here.

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