My name is Kelly McNamee and I have been a Consultant at The Lister Hospital in Stevenage since April 2019. Most of my medical education was in Liverpool however I transferred my training and gained my CCT in North East London.

My role at the Lister encompasses high risk maternal medicine clinics, trainee education and also resident on call. I feel this is an excellent opportunity to become familiar with trainees on the labour ward where the most valuable training and experience happens.

So, what is a Workforce Behaviour Champion? Regretfully, previous evidence suggests bullying and undermining are especially prevalent in Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Our training is intense with new curriculum demands, high workload with frequent rota gaps, litigation fears and overall a highly stressful environment! Negative behaviour such as bullying and undermining can lead to stress on mental health and compromise training. It can commonly lead to segregated team working but most importantly, can put patients at risk.

The RCOG produced a Taskforce document in 2013 encouraging support for trainees who were experiencing bullying and/or undermining. As Workforce Behaviour Champion, I will be neutral and objective in supporting you. This may involve talking with you and members of your department or a deeper review within the circumstance. I’m approachable and fair plus I still remember my life as a trainee vividly!