Student Advisors Ellie Hutson (Student Midwife), Sharon Adebisi (Medicine), Prince Ihionvien (Medicine), Victoria Idowu (Medicine), Khalida Ahmad (Medicine) and Chloe Tucker-Simpson (Student Midwife) attended the Black Maternal Health Conference UK. Here they share their reflections and learnings from the conference.
Left to Right Ellie Hutson (Student Midwife), Sharon Adebisi (Medicine), Prince Ihionvien (Medicine), Victoria Idowu (Medicine), Khalida Ahmad (Medicine), Chloe Tucker-Simpson (Student Midwife)
Politics on Black Maternal Health
What is Black maternal health, you may ask?
Black maternal health is a current crisis that highlights the clear disparities, segregation and neglect that Black women face within healthcare — especially in maternity services. These issues often stem from underdiagnosis, systemic racism, a lack of being listened to, and delayed or refused treatment.
Compared to women from other ethnicities, these challenges are not experienced on the same scale. For example, it’s reported that around 40% of Black women experience maternal mental health issues, yet many receive little to no support. As students, we often ask ourselves why — because that could be a friend, a relative, or even one of us one day if we decide to have children.
This reality hits home, especially when we consider that as of 2023, 24.2% of NHS staff are from BAME backgrounds — yet only 29.2% make up nurses, midwives, and health visitors. In our opinion, that shows a clear gap in diversity. Representation and inclusion are key forms of advocacy, especially in maternity services where trust, understanding, and culturally safe care are vital.
When it comes to NHS funding, it is increasingly sparse. There are many reasons for this — rising costs of healthcare such as new treatments, equipment, and medication, alongside staff shortages and wage pressures. All of these factors lead to cutbacks in care — not just in maternity, but across the entire NHS.
This presents a clear contradiction, as one of the NHS’s core values is a commitment to high-quality care. However, for Black women, this standard is often not met. According to the MBRRACE-UK (Mothers and Babies: Reducing Risk through Audits and Confidential Enquiries across the UK)report, Black women are still four times more likely to die during pregnancy or childbirth compared to their white counterparts. This highlights a significant lack of accountability within the system. Black women deserve to be protected as service users and should never be subjected to inhumane treatment or refusal of care. This raises the important question: Is the Human Rights Act 1998 truly being upheld for Black women within maternity care?
Unfortunately, the root of many of these issues lies in austerity policies introduced after the 2008 financial crisis. In response to economic pressures, the government reduced public spending, resulting in cuts to staffing, training, equipment, and vital services. This has made it increasingly difficult to provide essential maternity care such as antenatal classes and postnatal visits. Black women, already disproportionately impacted, are often the ones who suffer most — reinforcing their neglect within the system.
Healthcare Experiences & Chronic Conditions
Healthcare experiences
The panel discussion highlighted deeply personal and professional experiences of Black maternal healthcare. Speakers shared painful accounts of being dismissed, mistreated, or neglected, sometimes fatally by healthcare providers. These were not isolated incidents but reflections of wider systemic issues. In the workplace, professionals described witnessing or challenging discriminatory practices, and the emotional toll it takes. The conversation emphasised the need for culturally competent care, anti-racism training, and safe spaces for Black women to speak and be heard.
Chronic conditions – Stories told by Mothers
Within the conference there was representation from both service users and clinicians in regards to maternal health. One poignant talk was delivered by Nellie Robert Gbadebo who shared her journey as a maternal cancer survivor. She recounted how the support and clinical information she received did not represent her as a young 26-year-old woman, pregnant or as a black woman. From this lack of representation she found herself asking, “why me?” As she felt alone in her journey at a time when she most needed to feel supported and safe. She is now thankfully in remission, a mother to three young children and a fierce campaigner for education on how cancer presents in black women, warning signs to look for and how to advocate for your own health. She also gives women the platform to find others who have been through or going through similar journeys to nurture community and support.
Health Equity & Promotion
Breaking Barriers, fighting for health equity
Tackling racism in healthcare demands real investment, actionable policies, better bias training, recognition of diverse symptoms and resolving the midwifery crisis to ensure equitable care for Black mothers.
Black maternal health is a human rights issue. We must amplify Black mother’s voices, challenge dismissal of their pain, demand accountability and resist healthcare privatisation that deepens inequality.
Organisations like The Motherhood Group and Five X More are doing incredible work to improve Black maternal outcomes. They have created safe spaces for Black mothers to share experiences and learn from one another on how to advocate for themselves, raise awareness of the maternal mortality disparities in national media and government, and push for policy change. Their campaigns have helped influence national conversations and healthcare guidelines. To build lasting impact, unversities should partner with these organisations- integrating their insights into curriculum, inviting them to lead workshops, and involving them in developing culturally competent resources. Embedding grassroots voices in training helps future clinicians better understand, respect and respond to the needs of Black women.
True representation means not only seeing diversity in staff but also ensuring that the lived experiences of Black women shape how we teach, learn and deliver care.
Community-led initiatives and grassroots solutions
Currently in the works are a number of community led initiatives and grassroots solutions dedicated to regain the trust of black women in the healthcare system and deliver holistic support, especially in areas where their needs are not being met. These include:
· Young Mums Support Network – an award-winning women’s organisation which focuses on empowering, training and supporting young mothers and carers in deprived areas
· The Magpie Project – a community of women who provided essentials, advice and support to mothers and their pre-school children who are in unstable accommodation
· Awards4All Lottery – a National Lottery community fund who have financially supported causes like The Motherhood Group to improve Black maternal healthcare experiences. This has contributed to the training of over 7000 healthcare practitioners on working effectively with Black mums.
“Mothers shouldn’t have to educate healthcare workers amidst their suffering” was a great take-home message from the BMH conference. Efforts should be made by everyone in the healthcare sector to ensure that fair and equal maternal healthcare is provided for all, and not forgetting or neglecting Black mothers in the process.
Words by: Ellie Hutson, Sharon Adebisi, Prince Ihionvien, Victoria Idowu, Khalida Ahmad and Chloe Tucker-Simpson