Politicians have been urged to step up by the leader of the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) and stamp out racism in maternity care for good.
The RCM highlights the “growing body of evidence” that pregnancy outcomes for non-white women and those from marginalised groups are worse, emphasising that no person’s experience should be different and that maternity services should reflect the needs of the communities they serve and the staff therein.
“Midwives aspire to deliver compassionate, empathetic care no matter their race or background,” said the RCM’s CEO, Gill Walton.
“All those involved in commissioning and delivering maternity services must work together to address the unacceptable disparity in pregnancy outcomes for those from the global majority and disadvantaged backgrounds.”
Figures released from Oxford University’s MBRRACE-UK collaborative suggested that Black women are three times more likely to die during pregnancy or immediately afterwards than white women, while Asian women were twice as likely.
An RCM position statement from 2021 highlighted that Black, Asian and minority ethnic midwives and maternity support workers experience bullying, harassment and discrimination at work — this is in addition to them being more likely to face disciplinary action and less likely to have the opportunity to progress their careers.
Walton added: “It’s crucial that all those working in maternity services are aware of the increased risk, so they can personalise and enhance care for Black, Asian and minority ethnic women.
“We will continue our work to make maternity care better for these women and their babies, but we cannot do it alone.”
The RCM has already set out what it believes the next government’s priorities should be.
“The work must be underpinned by investment for improved training and support for all those staffing maternity services,” added Walton.
Find out how the maternity sector could become the envy of the world here.
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![[Left to right] Prof. Ronan Killeen - Consultant Radiologist at St. Vincent's Private Hospital, Andy Wilks - Head of Enterprise Services for Siemens Healthineers Great Britain and Ireland, Edel O’Keeffe - Director of Finance at St. Vincent's Private Hospital, Ghada Trotabas - Managing Director of Siemens Healthineers Great Britain and Ireland, Brian Fitzgerald - Chief Executive Officer of St. Vincent's Private Hospital with Grania Heal – Country Head for Ireland at Siemens Healthineers, and Rob Ruttledge](/sites/nhe/files/styles/teaser/public/2024-09/Press%20release%20image-24.jpg?itok=gHKP-rtG)
