Lindsey Ahmet has been a registered nurse and midwife for over 30 years. She joined Middlesex University in 1994 having led equality and Public Health initiatives as a Senior Midwife in the East End of London. Raised in the Rocky Mountains, USA, a card carrying feminist and ex-hippy she came to midwifery after experiencing life in different parts of the Med and earning a BSoc Sci from City University, London. this was followed by graduate studies in Birmingham and Bradford. During her shortened nursing course for graduates at St. Georges Hospital, London Lindsey arranged and undertook a month long "obstetric Tour de France", including Michelle Odent's Water Birth Unit in Pithiviers. She has made contributions to national and local policy develoment including as a member of the North East London Maternity Services Liasion Ctte., the NCT and some All Party Parliamentery Groups related to women's health. Papers have been presented locally, nationally and internationally concerning maternal health, counselling , diversity and breastfeeding. Ms Ahmet has 2 sons and has remained an active co-counsellor and parent volunteer with Woodcraft Folk.
I speak enough French and Turkish for conversation plus some Greek, Spanish, Urdu and Bengali.
I have a little of some other languages but vocabulary is maternal and infant health focused!
I have taught and led modules on post-graduate and undergraduate midwifery courses (primarily the latter). This includes modules in every year of the 3 year programme and Practice Modules MWY1001/2, MWY 2405, MWY3001/2. The theoretical areas covered included learning and education in midwifery MWY4001 and public health elements inboth shortened and 3 year modules MWY 3301M WY3406. Much work has been undertaken in teaching in inclusive effective midwifery care for mothers for whom exclusion, discrimination or deprivation might be signficant. This includes where differences may be positive for families e.g. faith and ethnicity or sexual orientation as well as where difference is associated with vulnerablity and poorer outcomes e.g. poverty, human trafiicking, domestic violence, sex work, FGM. In relation to this teaching strong relationships have been built with local service users groups to strengthen students' experience and hopefully the effectiveness of their subsequent midwifery care e.g. orthodox Jewish doulas, Jehovah Witnesses,Moslem chaplaincy, travellers, teen mothers. Links have also been established with clinicians dealing with related medical conditions e.g. specialists in smoking cessation, diabetes in pregnancy, sickle anaemia, drug-using mothers or those with mental health problems. Specialist topics in FGM and Breastfeeding have been taught to all pre-registration midwifery levels and also medical /nursing students. Additionally these topics have been presented for professional development for various professional groups. Iniitiatives have been devleoiped for multi-professional learning across the school and with medical students.
Inter-professional learning for health students.
Breastfeeding skills for midwives mothers and students.
Peri-natal mental health and how this can be fostered.
FGM as a public health issue.
Diversity and vulnerability in effective midwifery care inlcuding faith, sexuality, mental well-being age, povery and sexuality.
Service user voice in health and education
Member of all party parliamentary ctteee on FGM Contributor to local policy development on this topic .
Presented papers nationally on breastfeeding and diversity. Contributor to local policy development and that of RCM on these topics (e.g. care of lesbian mothers).
Presented papers on FGM in the UK and midwife to midwife counselling support at the International Confederation of Midiwves in Durban 2011
Multi-Professional work on FGM includingwith Ministers & MPs, Scotland Yard, International NGOs, & key people from Royal Colleges. Worked with clinical colleagues to present on this topic at ICM conferences in Durban (2011) Prague (2014) Toronto (2016). Did work on DoH project developing multi-professional health curriculum on topic.
