Winning the Royal College of Nursing’s Black History Month Making a Difference Award
It’s been a brilliant October as we have received news, as part of Black History Month, that two of our local maternity system colleagues have won the Royal College of Nursing’s regional award for their commitment to healthcare and making a difference. 
Ranjana Basra, Senior Informatics Lead and Sylvia Owusu-Nepaul, Lead Midwife for Equity, who both work in the Birmingham and Solihull Local Maternity and Neonatal System (LMNS) were nominated by Rachel Carter, our Director of Midwifery and Deputy Chief Nurse (Women’s) for their contributions to making a real difference in the delivery of healthcare. Those nominated had to be from, or be allies of, Black, Asian or minority ethnic nursing communities.
The pair received their Outstanding Contribution Team award earlier this month at the Midlands Art Centre (MAC Birmingham) in Edgbaston with the theme of the conference being ‘Anti-Racism’, promoting justice, health and wellbeing through exploring barriers to race equality in nursing.
Upon receiving their award, the judges said that Sylvia and Ranjana had been innovative, creative and have shown leadership which has made a positive difference to BAME women. Their nomination illustrates understanding of the lived experience of BAME people, the value of educating service users and raising awareness of services and support.
Their nomination was for their keen ability to analyse, gather and interpret data to inform areas that require improvement for our women, babies and families seeking care across our maternity services. This involves improving upon equity of access, community-based outreach, engagement with third-party stakeholders and care for our population.
Ranjana said: “It’s so inspiring. We’re grateful to be nominated and to the Royal College of Nursing for recognising the amazing work that we’ve done. To be recognised is great and that’s only because of the people who support us in improving the quality of our patient care.”
Sylvia added: “It has been a great honour to be recognised for the detailed work that the team has put together for the service of women and their families. We truly believe that this is the first step in balancing inequalities that exist within vulnerable groups. We are happy that this has been acknowledged by the two provider Trusts (BWC and University Hospitals Birmingham) as well as the RCN.”