Out and about with RCM Scotland

By Angela Boyle on 06 September 2018 NHS

We’ve had a busy few months with planning, organising and delivering learning events to members and maternity staff across Scotland. Emma Currer and Angela Boyle from the RCM Scotland office visited with staff in NHS Shetland and NHS Orkney as part of our Health Board of the Month initiative. 

We spoke with staff about pertinent issues in maternity services, namely Continuity of Carer, and staff had the opportunity to share with us what’s happening in their local maternity services. We managed to see the new hospital that is being built in Orkney and the maternity team will be moving into their new home next summer. We can’t wait to be invited back to see the brand spanking new hospital….not that we are hinting on an invite!

Angela has been working with the University of the West of Scotland (UWS) to deliver a communication workshop to the new cohort of Maternity Care Assistants. Jane Cameron from Positively Speaking delivered a fantastic workshop around Professional Communication to the MCAs on their first day at the swanky new UWS Campus for the School of Health. We received really great feedback from the course, with many of the MCAs saying that they could have listened to Jane all day. The workshop gives learners the confidence to enable them to deliver clear messages, whether that’s in a group setting, to patients, peers, other health professionals and management. As part of the course, the MCAs are asked to deliver a short poster presentation and after this workshop, many feel that they can take this on with ease and confidence. The RCM Scotland team have been invited back to speak to the MCAs later on in their course.

The team have been invited along to various RCM branch meetings in the near future to speak to staff about Continuity of Carer. Mary Ross-Davie and Angela will be visiting with the RCM Borders Branch in September, then visiting staff in Dumfries and Galloway in October. Jackie Mitchell and Angela have been invited along to the RCM Fife Branch event on Continuity of Carer in November, where we will hear from the Continuity of Carer team from NHS Forth Valley, who will be sharing their experiences of working to this model of care since earlier this year.  

Angela and Emma have been working with a midwife from NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde to deliver an event on Human Trafficking in Glasgow on 6th November. Hilary Alba is a Special Needs in Pregnancy midwife who works with women from all backgrounds, which includes trafficked women, FGM victims and survivors and asylum seekers. This full day conference includes input from Police Scotland, leading Health Professionals and organisations working with victims of human trafficking. We’ve had such a great response to this event, it sold out within 4 weeks of being advertised! 

And finally, we’d like to welcome our new learning reps to the RCM. We’ve had an influx of new reps over the last few months and they are looking forward to undertaking their training in the near future. Our existing reps have been busy assisting our members locally and will be working with Angela to develop events and activities for next year, watch this space!