An inequalities watchdog has called out racist behavior by maternity staff in a series of “deeply concerning” reports by two public health regulators in England.
Several cases of racism towards patients have been reported by the Care Quality Commission, which regulates health providers, and a workforce monitoring body in England’s public health system, the National Health Service.
In one case, qualified midwives at a city hospital in the Midlands reportedly called brown who asked for pain relief during labor “Asian princesses.”
Midwifery trainees described the behavior to an NHS England workforce, training and education team who were visiting University Hospitals Birmingham. They also said some midwives paid less regard to women of color, especially if English wasn’t their first language.
The comments were reported Friday by industry journal, the HSJ.
Midwives play a major role in maternity care in England. They undergo three years of university-level study to qualify and are present at all planned births.
The trainee’s claims mirror concerns raised by an ongoing review into maternity care at a city hospital in Nottingham in the East Midlands.
Senior midwife Donna Ockendon, who is leading the independent investigation, wrote in a letter to the hospital trust’s chief executive: “Non-white mothers are spoken to more rudely and in a more dismissive way than their white counterparts.”
The Care Quality Commission recently raised similar concerns about care at a hospital in Kettering, also in the East Midlands. Its inspectors noted “discrimination towards ethnic minority patients” in a report.
England is currently facing up to major patient safety issues in maternity departments across the country. Many factors, including years of short staffing, are thought to have contributed to a toxic culture at a number of hospital trusts, as multiple independent reviews have found.
Campaigners have been raising questions about racial inequality in the services for years. Women of color experience significantly worse maternity outcomes than white women, including much higher rates of maternal mortality.
The leaders of inequalities watchdog, the NHS Race and Health Observatory, criticized these latest racist incidents. Chief executive Habib Naqvi told HSJ he was “deeply concerned” by the reports.
He said that “discriminatory behaviours and ways of working… [can] lead to hostile and unsupportive learning environments… impact patient care and safety, and also seriously undermine the NHS’s goal of attracting and retaining its workforce.”
Saffron Cordery, deputy chief executive at hospital leadership body NHS Providers said organizations were working hard to “stamp out racism” and “improve equality in healthcare” to create a “safe and supportive environment for all patients.”
Lawmakers have previously criticized the government for failing to adequately recognize or respond to clear evidence of racial disparities in maternal health. On Friday, Cordery called for more action from leaders.
“Maternity services face a number of challenges including an increase in the complexity of cases, significant workforce gaps and persistent health inequalities,” she added, calling on government to provide “national support for initiatives focusing on training, education, and cultural competency.”
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