Glimmers of hope
In May, the RCM surveyed final-year student midwives on their confidence in finding post-qualification employment as a midwife. More than eight out of 10 student midwives said that they were ‘not confident’ they would find a job once graduating, despite maternity services across the UK struggling with understaffing. Funding cuts and recruitment freezes are to blame, […]
Be the change you want to see
Historically, the advancement and practice of medicine has been the sole preserve of white men. Consequently, much of the knowledge we have today is ingrained with unconscious bias about women and people of colour. So where does that leave maternity care? In teaching this knowledge, are we also continuing to pass on these outdated attitudes […]
Leading with purpose
Jessica Giblin Senior community midwife, Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust I was 18 months into my new role and hadn’t done any formal leadership training before when the Trust put me forward. The [Band 7 Syndeo] programme ran over several months, with three face-to-face sessions, two online sessions and lots of self-directed learning. As part […]
Mwy na geiriau
Using the Welsh language in maternity services can transform birth experiences, bringing wellbeing and satisfaction for midwives, maternity care assistants, maternity support workers (MSWs) and those they care for. In Welsh maternity services, there’s a strong emphasis on providing care in the language of the service user’s choice, with Cymraeg actively offered. Research shows that […]
communication corner: Access for all
In the UK, around one in seven people are neurodivergent, so how can we ensure that they are getting the best support? Ruby Handley-Stone is part of the team that created the RCM’s Neurodivergence Acceptance Toolkit The toolkit was created to help midwifery educators embed fair and equitable processes that ensure the needs of neurodivergent […]
Vaccinations in pregnancy – a little reassurance goes a long way
You may not be giving vaccinations but you will likely be asked about them. So how do you counsel and advise those in your care? With winter around the corner, midwives are under increasing pressure as they prepare for the seasonal vaccinations programme. On top of this, the new respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine is […]
Employment advice – ECMs and flexible working
Being an early career midwife (ECM) might not be all plain sailing, but regional head for the north of England Lynne Galvin says the RCM is here to help Q: I’m newly qualified and want to work part-time due to caring responsibilities, but I’m finding my new workplace resistant to this and I feel a little […]
A different view
Ruth Lester, from upper limb difference charity Reach, discusses how to support parents of babies with visually different upper limbs at birth Congenital upper limb anomalies are rare conditions affecting 19.2 to 27.2 per 10,000 live births. The range of differences is very great – from simple accessory digits to complex presentations. The ability to detect […]
Voice of a… student midwife
Nic Ferguson, a third-year at Edinburgh Napier University and chair of the Student Midwives Forum (SMF), spoke at the RCM conference in May I had the pleasure of speaking at the RCM conference on the topic of leadership in maternity services. As a student midwife, the opportunity to speak on a topic that is fundamental […]
Refresher: RCM activists
There are more than 1,500 activists spread across 200 RCM branches in the UK. RCM branches are the hub of local activity for members, from social events to employment advice 1. What does ‘activist’ mean? An activist is a generic term for any member who holds an elected role at local level. This includes the statutory […]