Source · Select Committees · Women and Equalities Committee
Recommendation 1
1
Deferred
The causes of the appalling disparity in maternal deaths are multiple, complex and still not...
Recommendation
The causes of the appalling disparity in maternal deaths are multiple, complex and still not fully understood. Fixating on any one cause risks over-simplifying the problem and placing blame on the very women who are most at risk. Too many Black women have experienced treatment that falls short of acceptable standards, and we are concerned that the Government and NHS leadership have underestimated the extent to which racism plays a role. The maternity workforce must be properly equipped to understand and recognise the significant disparities that exist, and to use that knowledge to deliver personalised, effective and respectful care. Health Education England must lead a co-ordinated review involving the National Midwifery Council, General Medical Council, Royal College of Midwives and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, to ensure that both the training curricula and continuing professional development requirements for all maternity staff include evidence-based learning on maternal health disparities, its possible causes, and how to deliver culturally competent, personalised and evidence-led care. (Paragraph 19) Tackling the disparities—work undertaken to date
Government Response Summary
NHS England will carry out a scoping exercise to fully understand the implications of co-ordinating a review of training curricula and continuing professional development requirements for all maternity staff.
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government
Deferred
11. There are several organisations involved in undergraduate and postgraduate education across the various professions involved in this area of care. The healthcare regulators, the General Medical Council and the Nursing and Midwifery Council are responsible for setting standards for undergraduate education and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists sets the curriculum for postgraduate medical training. 12. NHS England will carry out a scoping exercise to fully understand the implications of co-ordinating this review and determine how best to bring the relevant stakeholders together. 13. All maternity staff have free access to cultural competence training, developed in partnership with Health Education England and in collaboration with the Royal College of Midwives. NHS Equity & Equality Guidance asks that cultural competence training is rolled out to staff in maternity and neonatal services. 14. In November 2022, in partnership with the Nursing and Midwifery Council and NHS Confederation, NHS England published a new resource4 for combatting racial discrimination against ethnic minority nurses and nursing associates. This resource will support all registered nursing and midwifery professionals working in the NHS, and across all health and care settings, to combat racism and challenge racial discrimination. There are four key areas that make up the nursing and midwifery anti-racism resource framework; challenging racism, challenging leadership, authentic inclusion and caring and belonging.