A London midwife was honoured yesterday by the Royal College of Midwives for her work in tackling equality and diversity in maternity care.
Kate Brintworth, won a national award for her work tackling racism within the NHS workforce. Kate created an anti-racism programme which is now being piloted in the trust with the aim of being rolled out in the wider NHS.
Kate who works as the Regional Chief Midwife for London at NHS England received the equality diversity and inclusion award at the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) annual awards in London on 19 May.
The programme is designed to support midwives who sometimes face high levels of discrimination at work. Kate developed an anti-racism framework which is used by staff to tackle discrimination they may face in maternity services by giving them a safe space to discuss any issues they have with senior management as well as their colleagues. The second part of programme is the Fellowship, which helps midwives specifically from the global majority movie into leadership roles by helps them to build confidence, knowledge and skills through various skills sessions.
Upon receiving the award Kate said: “From the feedback I’ve had from those who’ve attended, it’s about being heard and being believed. It’s about being listened to and valued. It’s the difference that having someone reach out to them and say you are important, you should have ambitions and you should go for them.”
So far the Fellowship has been a huge success. Over a third of those using it moving into more senior roles within three months and over 70% saying they felt more confident and knowledgeable once they went through the programme.
Commenting on the success of the framework and the Fellowship Jane Clegg, Regional Chief Nurse for the NHS in London said: “Kate is a real attribute to the NHS midwifery workforce in London for not only her leadership but also her integrity and commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion. The Anti-Racism Framework and six-month fellowship that Kate has championed are excellent examples of this and seek to ensure all midwives have the same opportunities to achieve their career goals.
“I’m delighted that Kate’s contributions to tackle racism in the workforce have been recognised with this award and on behalf of all my NHS England colleagues in the capital, I’d like to wish her a huge congratulations!”
The RCM’s Chief Executive, Gill Walton, who presented Kate with her award said: “I am very proud to present this award to Kate. The RCM is committed to being anti-racist, supporting midwives and maternity support workers of colour, but we can’t do it alone. Tackling racism in our health service wherever it rears its ugly head is everyone’s job. By developing and implementing this programme Kate has stepped up and set an outstanding example and done something that will benefit potentially hundreds of midwives from the global majority. This is thoroughly worthy of an RCM award. Well done Kate!”
