The RCM Podcast
The RCM monthly podcast platform; providing members with a key insight into the work that is happening by RCM staff on behalf of its members while also featuring midwives, maternity support workers and student midwives in addition to some special guests.
This podcast has been published and can be heard everywhere your podcast is available, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
The RCM podcast episodes:
Following the release of the RCM’s brand new roadmap to better perinatal mental health, we are joined by maternity staff who specialise in supporting women and families impacted, while looking at what investment and improvements are needed from the Government.
In a very special episode of the RCM podcast, we are joined by the Chief Midwifery Officers of all four nations to talk about their midwifery journeys and their aspirations for midwifery and maternity care.
Welcome to a brand-new series of podcasts by the Royal College of Midwives (RCM). Every month the RCM will deliver a new podcast episode focused on the work the College is doing with and on behalf of its midwife and maternity support worker members. The episodes feature midwives, maternity support workers and student midwives, educators, researchers and more as well as some very special guests.
Welcome to a brand-new series of podcasts by the Royal College of Midwives (RCM). Every month the RCM will deliver a new podcast episode focused on the work the College is doing with and on behalf of its midwife and maternity support worker members. The episodes feature midwives, maternity support workers and student midwives, educators, researchers and more as well as some very special guests.
Every day is a school day – it’s a phrase that could be written for working in and around maternity. We are continuously learning, from the colleagues around us and the women in our care to the education and training that is part and parcel of midwifery and maternity support. In this month’s episode, we look at education through different lenses and hear from students, midwives and midwifery educators about their experiences.
We often hear the phrase you can't pour from an empty cup but how often do we really apply that to ourselves? All too often we feel guilty about looking after ourselves and when we do put ourselves on our to do list it is often last on the list. In this episode we're going to be looking at self-care and suggesting that looking after ourselves is the best way of looking after others. Hear from inspirational women and RCM members across the UK on how self-care has helped their health and wellbeing.
i-learn
Promoting compassionate and supportive workplaces
- M52 Job sharing / part-time working;
- M72 Workplace culture;
- M75 Return to practice;
- M91 Coping and resilience in midwifery;
- M98 Psychological safety;
- M99 Pay and employment benefits;
- M9 Role and status of midwives;
- M10 Stress and burnout in midwifery;
- M14 Retention and recruitment of midwives;
- M15 Job satisfaction;
- M16 Men in midwifery;
- PN69 Debriefing and post traumatic stress disorder
The RCM podcast is back! In the newest episode of our podcast series, we speak with members on how they became more involved in activism and in the RCM, what inspired them to get more engaged, what was happening at the time and what it has taught them both professionally and personally.
Wondering what the recent pay award announcement means in real terms for you? Why the RCM has launched a consultation with all midwives and MSWs working in the NHS in England and Wales? If so, this is the episode for you!
Re:Birth was a project led by the RCM with an aim to find a consensus on the language used by midwives, maternity support workers, and all maternity staff used to describe birth and labour. The year-long project listened to women's voices to really hear and learn more about how the language that was used during their maternity care impacted their experiences.
Want to know more about what the RCM as a trade union is doing for you? Well, this is the episode for you! In our May episode, we hear from RCM’s newly appointed Executive Director Trade Union Suzanne Tyler about what her team is doing to improve workplace support for midwives and maternity support workers across the UK. Hear more about the RCM’s key priorities to improve member experiences. Plus more on the upcoming TUC rally on 18 June on how you and your RCM Branch can get planning to attend.
On 30 March the Ockenden Review into maternity services at Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust was published – it was the biggest review into any UK maternity service in the history of the NHS. In this episode hear directly from midwife Donna Ockenden about her team's work, and the bravery of the families who fought to have this report published. Donna also shares her hopes for widespread safety improvements and thoughts on more investment in maternity staff to deliver safer care. Gemma also sits down with RCM’s Chief Executive Gill Walton to hear her reaction to the report and more about how RCM members are coping with understaffed services.
Apple Podcasts
Spotify
In this episode, Sean O’ Sullivan RCM’s Head of Health and Social Policy joins us to discuss why funding for maternity services is so desperately needed, workforce issues, and the upcoming Ockenden report. We also speak with Catherine Cargill a former MSW and now a second-year student midwife, to hear her thoughts on the current situation as prepares to enter the profession and why she’s chosen to become a midwife and remains committed despite many reconsidering their roles in maternity services due to the immense pressures and stress.
If you want to learn more about what the RCM is doing to support its members when it comes to improving pay and pensions this is the episode for you. In this episode we are joined by Lynne Galvin one of the RCM’s leads on pensions who offers great insight into the upcoming changes happening to the NHS pension scheme from April which will affect RCM members. Lynne also shares some great advice on what members need to do to ensure a smooth transition for those impacted by changes.
Anne Watkins from Wales, Misbah Mahmood from Leeds, and Moira Mooney from Scotland share their experiences of working as Digital Midwives and the challenges of balancing the role with their clinical work. The RCM's Digital Midwife Advisor Victoria Komolafe joins the conversation with more on what the RCM has planned to support members with the shift to Digital in 2022.
If you haven't managed to listen to all the episodes from the RCM's 2021 podcast series this is the episode for you. Hear some great highlights including stories from midwives and maternity support workers from across this year and a special Christmas message from RCM’s Chief Executive Gill Walton to RCM members.
The winner of the NMC's Excellence in Perinatal Mental Health Award from North Middlesex University Hospital Trust, Fiona Laird shares how she and Melissa Jhagroo set up an award-winning service to support women from a diverse range of backgrounds with their mental health during and after pregnancy. Plus many more winners from 2021.
Maternity support worker, Keelie Barrett, shares her experiences and recent workplace wins as an RCM health & safety rep, Keelie also discusses her role as an RCM Board member. We are also joined by Sean O’ Sullivan RCM’s Head of Health and Social Policy who talks about the RCM’s One Voice collaboration, how influential the RCM’s policy work has been, and how working together is key to securing stronger influence and wins for RCM members.
How has it been on clinical placement and studying during the pandemic? What inspired them to become a midwife? What have been the biggest challenges? What’s it like to start a profession in law change to train as a midwife? How hard is it to juggle childcare while on clinical placement? and what advice do these student midwives have for anyone considering becoming a midwife.
Find out more about the support the RCM provides student midwives and those in their first three years after qualification.
ilearn
Making the most of your RCM library resources
- M26 Student midwives;
- M23 Preceptors and mentors
In this episode we meet with midwives from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds who bravely share their personal stories of how racism has impacted their midwifery careers, they speak of the challenges they’ve faced and how they have positively tackled and overcame racist behaviours in the workplace. Some of these midwives experienced racism from their colleagues others sadly from the pregnant women they were caring for and their stories need to be heard. Midwife Lola Onato also talks to us about returning to her University to support diversity in student recruitment.
Resources
Refugees and asylum seekers in pregnancy webinar
Decolonising the midwifery curriculum webinar
i-learn courses
Equality and Diversity (Care Certificate Standard 4)
Health inequalities:the power of maternity care
- P182 Racial disparities in maternal health and pregnancy outcome;
- PN195 Racial disparities in infant health outcomes;
- M96 Institutional racism;
- MS71 Disrespect and abuse in childbirth;
- MS75 Culturally sensitive maternity care;
The RCM supports and champions safe high quality safe across all work that midwives and maternity staff do and say ‘safety in maternity services must be everyone’s business’.
In this brand new episode on safety and quality we speak to RCM’s Head of Safety and Quality Zeenath Uddin about the challenges facing all midwives when it comes to safety. Zeenath also talks about learning from reports that have repeatedly flagged similar safety concerns and what the RCM is doing to support its members in practice.
Maternity Support Workers (MSWs) and Maternity Care Assistants (MCA's) are vital members of the maternity team. In this episode, we dive into the world to learn more about the day to day. Catching up with RCM members from Greater Manchester, Scotland, and Norfolk who all have unique and inspiring stories to tell, this episode is not to be missed.
Find out more about the support the RCM provides maternity support workers.
Webinars
Maternity Support Workers and the RCM
ilearn
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M57 Maternity support workers and health care assistants;
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PN5 Midwives and healthcare professionals: role in breastfeeding promotion and support
This latest episode comes a year to the day since the UK went into full lockdown, March 23, 2020. A year like no other for midwives, MSWs and maternity services. Birth is not something that can be rescheduled and happens 24 hours a day 365 days a year and midwives have been there delivering care to women and their babies, putting themselves at risk to ensure the safe delivery of new life into the world. How have they coped? What have been the biggest challenges? And what has the RCM done to support its members during the pandemic?
In this episode we speak with the RCM’s CEO Gill Walton to hear more about what the RCM is currently doing for its members and all the key work that’s happening. We are also joined by Rosemary Idiaghe a Consultant Midwife for midwife led care who discuss her career to date and her upcoming session on improving outcomes for Black, Asian and minority ethic women at the RCM’s Conference.
In this episode we talk with Gill Adgie RCM's Regional Head for the North of England who leads on the RCM's Caring for You campaign work. Gemma also interviews Jayne Frank and Maryanne Bray two midwives from Cardiff Vale University Health Board who have been instrumental in pushing the campaign forward within their own branch and Health Board. In this episode they share lots of ideas and tips on how they've embedded the campaign in their workplace and how that has supported and improved the health and wellbeing of their colleagues.
i-learn
Promoting compassionate and supportive workplaces
- M52 Job sharing / part-time working;
- M72 Workplace culture;
- M75 Return to practice;
- M91 Coping and resilience in midwifery;
- M98 Psychological safety;
- M99 Pay and employment benefits;
- M9 Role and status of midwives;
- M10 Stress and burnout in midwifery;
- M14 Retention and recruitment of midwives;
- M15 Job satisfaction;
- M16 Men in midwifery;
- PN69 Debriefing and post traumatic stress disorder
During this first episode Gemma talks to midwives Vlora Purchase from Greenwich and Lewisham NHS Trust and safeguarding midwife Wendy Warrington from Pennine Care NHS Foundation to gain some more insight into the important work they do. Gemma also catches up with RCM staff who developed a new RCM position statement on supporting women with severe and multiple disadvantage during pregnancy.
Download the RCM Supporting women with severe and multiple disadvantage during pregnancy position statement.
