Ms (Dr) Sarah Esegbona-Adeigbe

I am an Associate Professor in Midwifery, with extensive experience across clinical practice, education, research, and academic leadership across the UK and internationally. My work focuses on advancing equitable culturally safe maternity care and strengthening midwifery education to improve outcomes for women, birthing people and families from diverse backgrounds.

I bring over three decades of professional experience as a registered nurse and midwife and have held a range of specialist clinical roles, including fetal medicine and the care of women with  haemoglobinopathies. My clinical career includes international experience in the United States, where I worked within maternity and women’s health services, gaining valuable insight into diverse healthcare systems and approaches to maternal care. In addition, I have undertaken voluntary clinical and educational work in Nigeria, supporting maternity care delivery and contributing to capacity building in resource-limited settings, reinforcing my commitment to global health equity.

A defining achievement in my clinical leadership was leading the implementation of a maternity triage system, the first of its kind in London, which was formally recognised with an award for innovation in service improvement. This work improved urgent maternity assessment pathways, strengthened clinical decision-making, and enhanced service user safety and responsiveness.

In my academic leadership role, I am Course Lead for the Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) Midwifery programme (since 2021), with responsibility for curriculum design, quality enhancement and student experience. I also lead Level 7 modules in Additional Care in Pregnancy and Public Health in Midwifery, ensuring that advanced practice education is aligned with contemporary evidence, policy priorities, and the complex realities of maternity care. As the school of midwifery EDI lead, I have developed and led the implementation of cultural safety across the current midwifery curricula, embedding anti-racist practice, equity, and decolonised approaches across teaching, learning, and assessments. My work support students in developing critical awareness of health inequities and applying the understanding to clinical decision making.

I completed my PhD at the University of Hertfordshire, focusing on cultural competency in antenatal care among migrant Nigerian mothers and midwives. This work has informed my ongoing research in cultural safety, decolonised curricula, and addressing under-representation of Black and other marginalised groups in research and leadership within healthcare. 

My academic output includes sole authorship of Black African Culture in Pregnancy (2014) and Transcultural Midwifery Practice (2022), an international midwifery textbook which is used to support midwifery education and training across academic and practice settings. The textbook contributes to global midwifery education by addressing culturally competent care and culturally safe care and supporting practitioners in diverse settings. I have also authored two book chapters one involving an international collaboration on anti racism, alongside a wide body of peer reviewed papers on Black maternal health inequalities, antenatal care disparities, and systemic inequities affecting maternal outcomes. My research and scholarship directly aligns with my teaching practice, enabling continuous translation of evidence into curriculum devlopment and pedagogical innovation. My work is used in several universities across the UK in their module reading lists and I am recognised as a leader in culturally safe midwifery education. My publications are characterised by strong theorectical grounding combined with applied relevance, ensuring accessibility to practitioners, educators, policy makers and researchers. My work is consistently cited within midwifery, nursing and health equity literature and contributes to national and international debates on maternal health disparities. 

At a national level, I have a strong track record of translating research into practice and policy through consultancy, advisory roles and collaboration with professional bodes, NHS services and community stakeholders. I have contributed extensively to maternity policy and workforce development. I served for four years on the Royal College of Nursing's Midwifery Forum Steering Group, contributing to national policy direction and professional standards. I have acted as an invited expert member for research projects with the University of Oxford, Nuffield Trust and the James Lind Alliance/Royal College of Midwives. I am currently an invited Maternity and Midwifery Forum Advisory Panel member, supporting the development of national CPD programmes for health professionals across the UK. I also sit as a member of the Intense Fear of Pregnancy Loss working group.

I have presented my research findings at national and international conferences including the Virtual International Day of the Midwife, the Royal College of Midwives conference, the Association of Caribbean midwives, MBRRACE launch and the NHS midwifery research conference. 

I contribute to national and professional bodies focused on midwifery education, regulation and workforce development. My roles have included participation in expert advisory groups and engagement with national initatives aimed at improving maternal health outcomes for under represented groups. I am a member of the NHS England National Senior Ethnic Minority Expert Reference Group and I am a Maternity and Neonatal Stakeholder Council committee member. I have contributed to national clinical guidance on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in collaboration with the Royal College of Nursing, supporting safeguarding practice and culturally appropriate care. My regulatory experience includes eight years as a panel member for the Nursing and Midwifery Council Fitness to Practise committee, contributing to the maintenance of professional standards and public confidence in nursing and midwifery. I am a member of the Alliance of Diverse Academics in Nursing and Midwifery and the NHS BME network. I have been an external examiner since 2020 for MSc and BSc dissertations and CPD modules.

I maintain active international collaborations with midwifery educators and researchers contributing to shared work on maternal health inequalities and education innovation. I am currently an invited academic advisor for a joint project with the UK Nigerian Nurses Association and the Nigerian Department of Health focused on reducing maternal and neonatal mortality by reviewing curriculum development and educational reform, strengthening midwifery training frameworks and supporting workforce development. I am a member of the international Women in Qual organisation and the Qualitative Implementation Research, European Implemenation Collaborative working group. 

My contributions to midwifery and health equity have been recognised through multiple national awards, including the first Dora Opoku Midwives Award for Black and Brown midwives and the discretionary Ann Stewart Award for commitment to midwifery practice from the Iolanthe Midwifery Trust, and the Jean Davies Award from the Royal College of Midwives for addressing health inequalities. I have also been recognised as one of the Top 200 Nigerian health professionals in the UK, reflecting both professional excellence and wider societal impact. I am frequently invited to provide expert input on maternity equity, cultural safety and inclusive education, reflecting my standing as a trusted authority in the field. 

My work is defined by the integration of teaching excellence, applied scholarship and international engagement, with a clear focus on reducing health inequities through midwifery education. I continue to develop and disseminate inclusive educational approaches that support both student learning and improved maternal health outcomes. 

EDI lead Midwifery

External Examiner- MSc and BSc modules and CPD  (University of Staffordshire 2025 to present/ Manchester University 2020-2024)

Maternity and Neonatal Stakeholder council NHS England member 

Maternity and Midwifery Forum advisory panel member

National Senior Ethnic Minority Expert Reference Group NHS England member

Maternity and Neonatal Innovative Initiative (MAMII) (Nigerian nurses UK and Department of Health Nigeria) project team member

European Implementation Collaborative (EIC)- Qualitative Implementation Research working group and forum member 

Women in Qual community member

Quality Maternity and Newborn Care Research Alliance- group member 

Black Midwives Network curator

Cultural safety, Cultural competency, Additional care for women with complications, Public health, Haemoglobinopathies and Female Genital Mutilation