The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) has appointed an equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) advisor to its executive board and council.
Mac Alonge, from EDI specialists The Equal Group, will advise the NMC on building a more ‘equitable and inclusive’ culture, for an initial period of three months.
Mr Alonge is scheduled to have his first meeting with the NMC’s executive team and council in October and will advise the regulator on implementing the recommendations from a recent independent culture review.
In July, the Nazir Afzal and Rise Associates review reported serious concerns about the regulator, including a ‘toxic culture’ of bullying, harassment and racism.
Commenting on his appointment Mr Alonge said: ‘I understand that there is significant work to do at the NMC and this presents an opportunity to address a culture that has undermined the vital role that the NMC plays in our society.
‘The independent culture review must be viewed as an inflection point in the NMC’s journey, one which leads to more positive outcomes for staff, key stakeholders and society as a whole.’
The NMC committed to appointing an EDI advisor following the review, which also advised the regulator to take a ‘more sophisticated approach’ to collecting and using EDI data and to ‘address evidence of discrimination’ in its processes.
Helen Herniman, acting NMC chief executive and registrar, said Mr Alonge’s role will ‘be crucial’ to the regulator’s ‘discussions and decisions’ following the culture review.
‘We know that Mac’s appointment won’t solve the issues on its own but it’s an important first step on the journey towards ensuring EDI is always at the forefront of decision making,’ she said.
A second review into the regulator, focused on EDI, will be published by Ijeoma Omambala KC later this year.
