Heartbeat: Ambassador aiming to help transform service and inspire fellow midwives
March 28, 2020
Midwife Becky Fox has been selected as an ambassador which is part of the NHS Horizons campaign to re-ignite the passion that her colleagues have for their profession by flagging up new ideas and innovative ways of working.
Becky, who is also deputy matron for midwifery outpatients, aims to increase job satisfaction and improve retention. The Horizons campaign has been created by the Royal College of Nursing and aims to transform perceptions of nursing and midwifery.
Becky told Heartbeat: “I’m really pleased that I have been selected to carry out this important role within the Trust. I will be working with other midwives and nurses involved in maternity services across the UK in partnership with NHS Horizons. Through the project, we are aiming to learn about, share and spread ideas for innovative ways of working.”
Having hit the ground running, Becky has lots planned. “I will be organising a series of events tailored to different areas of the service over the next few months. Without giving too much away, as I want it to be a surprise, the planned events include hosting breakfasts for colleagues and mobile tea parties, providing refreshments in clinical areas where staff find it hard to get a well-deserved break.”
Becky also revealed other initiatives: “I am looking into adopting ‘15 seconds and save 30 minutes’. The message of this is that by quickly completing a small task, you can save a colleague 30 minutes further down the line. I will be running a workshop for team managers in maternity so that they can cascade it to their teams.”
Becky has also been busy working with the Black Country Local Maternity System (LMS) and has been working on a campaign to help pregnant women and their families to stop smoking. “I am in the process of setting up clinics at City and Sandwell sites. Everyone Health is now in the antenatal clinic at Sandwell on a monthly basis, offering advice not just on smoking cessation, but diabetes, obesity and other issues.
“We are also finalising plans for them to hold weekly clinics to support those who wish to stop smoking and providing nicotine replacement therapy. Once this has successfully been rolled out at Sandwell, we aim to replicate the model at City. I have also arranged for Everyone Health to set up community based clinics for smoking cessation in two of the Children’s Centres in the region and Cape Hill in Smethwick.”