Staff emotional safety in maternity care

Wilkinson highlights “tribalism and toxicity” as contributing to failing maternity services, citing Kirkup’s report attributing failures to poor culture and teamwork.1 Morgan wonders why a health system should be “powered by guilt, endless duty, and sacrifice rather than by safe working conditions, fair pay, and patient centred reorganisation.”2Wilkinson quotes Kirkup as saying, “If resources are scarce then teamwork is not an optional extra that you put off until everything’s rosy.” This overlooks whether individuals have any remaining mental capacity for change. It is often impossible to create psychological safety if one does not feel psychologically safe oneself. It is unsurprising that tired, frightened, and hungry maternity staff sometimes behave unprofessionally. In unsafe situations we fight, flee, or freeze. Few NHS staff arrive at work with malicious intent. While I do not seek to normalise unprofessional behaviour, I suggest we do need to accept the needs and limits of our shared…
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