Karlene Davis
Encyclopedia
Dame Karlene Davis, DBE is a former General Secretary of the Royal College of Midwives
, Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Midwifery, Regional Representative for Europe in the International Confederation of Midwives, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine
, and a member of the Wellbeing Council at the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
.
Born and raised in Jamaica
, Davis emigrated to the UK to train as a nurse and later as a midwife before going on to teach midwifery. Her goal is to see midwives acknowledged as the “lead professionals in maternity care, working together to enhance the wider public health both nationally and internationally”.
Davis was appointed General Secretary of The Royal College of Midwives in 1994 and served until October 2008.
In 2001 Davis was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire
for services to the National Health Service and midwifery.
She was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Science by the University of Greenwich
. She has become one of the most senior black women in the health profession and the UK's first black woman trade union leader.
Royal College of Midwives
The Royal College of Midwives is a British midwives organisation which has existed under its present name since 1947.-History:The Matrons' Aid Society, renamed the Midwives' Institute in 1881, was founded by Louisa Hubbard and Zepharina Veitch to raise the training and status of midwives...
, Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Midwifery, Regional Representative for Europe in the International Confederation of Midwives, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine
Royal Society of Medicine
The Royal Society of Medicine is a British charitable organisation whose main purpose is as a provider of medical education, running over 350 meetings and conferences each year.- History and overview :...
, and a member of the Wellbeing Council at the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists is a professional association based in the UK. Its members, including people with and without medical degrees, work in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology, that is, pregnancy, childbirth, and female sexual and reproductive health...
.
Born and raised in Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, Davis emigrated to the UK to train as a nurse and later as a midwife before going on to teach midwifery. Her goal is to see midwives acknowledged as the “lead professionals in maternity care, working together to enhance the wider public health both nationally and internationally”.
Davis was appointed General Secretary of The Royal College of Midwives in 1994 and served until October 2008.
In 2001 Davis was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
for services to the National Health Service and midwifery.
She was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Science by the University of Greenwich
University of Greenwich
The University of Greenwich is a British university located in the London Borough of Greenwich, London, England. The main campus is located on the grounds of the Old Royal Naval College, a central location within the Maritime Greenwich UNESCO World Heritage Site.-History:The history of the...
. She has become one of the most senior black women in the health profession and the UK's first black woman trade union leader.