Carmel Bagness
Carmel Bagness MA RN RM ADM PGCEA is a nurse and practicing midwife, who is currently the Professional Lead for Midwifery & Women's Health at the Royal College of Nursing.
This affords her opportunities to support individual nurses, midwives, nursing associates and healthcare support workers in a wide range of practice settings across the UK, as well as helping to shape critical decisions in healthcare through engaging with political and strategic partners.
She has been a midwife since 1984, with expertise across practice, management, leadership and education. She also enjoys writing on issues that impact on women’s lives, including Domestic Abuse, Menopause, Female Genital Mutilation, Maternal Mental Health, Period Poverty and co – edited the first edition of Midwifery Skills at a Glance. Her portfolio around women’s health and wellbeing includes considering what makes women vulnerable and how they can be best supported through quality healthcare. This has included development of resources on Domestic Abuse and Modern Slavery. She has also collaborated on publications around Bladder and Bowel Care in Childbirth, Multiple Births Midwife Standard, Making Sense of Women's Health, Transition from Fertility to Maternity Care and Advanced Nursing Practice.
She has recently been working on guidance and standards for Pregnancy Loss Care, Sexual Reproductive Health Competences for Women cared for in Prison, raising awareness of access to cervical screening, in particular for women with physical disabilities and women with autism, and a range of other clinical practice-based guidance for nurses, midwives, nursing associates and healthcare support workers. She represents the Royal College of Nursing at the International Confederation of Midwives, taking a keen interest in global midwifery. Her role also facilitates the development of her interests in reproductive and women’s health ethics and human rights for women.
