Team
Agnes Agyepong
Founder & CEO
United Kingdom
Agnes Agyepong is a mother of three and the founder and CEO of The Global Black Maternal Health Institute. As a maternal health advocate in the UK and former Head of Engagement at a national charity, Agnes has published articles and spoken extensively about the need for maternal health research to become more diverse and inclusive. As a key speaker her credits include the British Medical Association, The Royal College of Midwifery, Royal Society of Medicine, NHS and the Westminster Health Forum. She is also a named author on the Babies in Lockdown Report and supported the UK government on the flagship Early Years Healthy Development Review, a review into improving health and development outcomes for babies in England. Her work has been published by the World Health Organisation and her article “Why bias is key to stopping institutional and structural racism in healthcare and research” made it to the front page of international nursing journal, Nurse Researcher.
In 2018, she founded The GLOMAMA Awards, a prestigious annual awards celebrating the achievements of mums on social media, which encourages mothers to rediscover their “Glow” after pregnancy. She sits on the NIHR ARC Maternity and Perinatal Mental Health PPI strategy committee, is a founding member of the Maternity Mental Health SEL steering group and Service User Voice Representative (Patient and Public Voice PPV Partner)
for the Maternity Transformation Programme in the UK.
Isaac Owusu is a Senior Project Manager at The Global Black Maternal Health Institute with a particular focus on research, monitoring and evaluation. He is a research specialist with over 7 years of experience in social and market research for both industry and academic communities. Additionally, Isaac has over a decade of experience in media, advertising and business development.
He currently serves on the board of directors for two emerging organizations in the oil and gas sector, Equator Oil and Bogerhaus Engineering in addition to working in the developmental sector as a business consultant. He has an undergraduate certificate in Mathematics from KNUST, post-graduate certifications in business administration, monitoring & evaluation, and is currently an MPhil in Marketing candidate at the University of Ghana Business School.
Isaac Owusu
PROJECT MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT
Ghana
Reyss Wheeler
Head of Implementation
United Kingdom
Michelle Peter is a social scientist and researcher with over a decade’s worth of experience. As a Black researcher, but foremost as a Black mother, she is passionate about the drivers behind the racial inequalities that are prevalent in maternal health in the UK. Co-author of the landmark Five X More Black Maternity Experiences Survey Report, she is committed to working on projects that aim to address and improve equalities in healthcare. She has experience of both quantitative and qualitative methods and currently works across a number of projects exploring the social and ethical considerations involved in implementing prenatal and paediatric genetic tests into routine NHS care, with a focus on how to make the services that offer these tests equitable and accessible to all.
Dr. Michelle Peter
Head of Research
United Kingdom
Expert Advisers
Dr Karen Joash
Expert Adviser
United Kingdom
Dr Karen Joash is one of London’s leading and most dedicated Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist. She is known for her empathy, communication and personal approach to her patients and has been working in the field for over ten years. Practising at various of top clinics in the capital, including Portland Hospital, she aims to deliver care which is tailored to the needs of each individual woman. She is Director of Medical Education at Imperial College and has a track record of leading change and progression.
Dr Karen Joash is one of London’s leading and most dedicated Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist.
She graduated from Imperial College, London University and successfully obtained a place on the London Postgraduate obstetrics and gynaecology training programme and has worked at most of the prestigious London teaching hospitals.
She is an obstetrician and gynaecologist who is passionate about delivering high quality care to all women. Her notable flair is in empathy, communication and personal approach to her patients.
She has been working in obstetrics and gynaecology for over ten years and is well known for being a skilled labour ward practitioner. Her aim is to help women achieve the type of delivery which is tailored to their wants and needs. With her holistic approach and knowledge of both low risk and high risk conditions she is able to provide this for all women.
Her maternal medicine knowledge has been obtained from two of the best institutions, St Thomas hospital and Queen Charlotte’s and Chelsea Hospital, where she now works.
She provides a comprehensive service in gynaecology with expertise in early pregnancy and ambulatory gynaecology. She understands the busy schedules women have being able to fit most procedures into the office setting if required.
In her NHS role she is the lead for postnatal care understanding the birth journey doesn’t stop at delivery, but support in this period can be crucial. She is also the lead for maternity guidelines at Imperial Healthcare NHS Trust and is principled on the importance of safe practice. Dr Joash also leads on outpatient hysteroscopy and performs early pregnancy scans at Queen Charlottes Hospital.
Her passion for excellence in care led to her appointment as Training Programme Director for doctors in postgraduate training in Obstetrics and Gynaecology in North West London. In addition she is deputy head of school for London school of postgraduate obstetrics and gynaecology; and sits on the education quality assurance board at the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.
Janet Fyle MBE | MA | RN | RM
Janet Fyle is the Royal College of Midwives’ (RCM) Professional Policy Advisor. She is a Registered Practicing Midwife, a Registered Nurse, and a Cardiff University School of Policy & Law accredited Expert Witness. Through her advice to the RCM, she partners with stakeholders on key policy areas of women’s and children’s health and well-being. Her interests lie in inequalities in maternity care and outcomes in their wider social, political, and economic contexts. Her work highlights how these issues have a direct and disproportionate impact on women and families, particularly those from BME communities.
Janet has for years played a leading role in national campaigns for change on wider health issues, for equal access to services for marginalized communities, and for improved pregnancy outcomes for Black, Asian, and ethnic minority women. Her publications, collaborations, and media appearances have advocated improved services for women with pregnancy-related mental illness and the safeguarding of children from exploitation. Janet has also worked on people trafficking and developed resources with
others for midwives and maternity services to be aware and provide sensitive care and services for women and girls who have been trafficked into the UK.
Janet is an advocate for ending violence against women and girls (domestic abuse, child marriage, forced marriage, Female Genital Mutilation, honour abuse, and modern slavery). She led the development and publication of the Intercollegiate Recommendations for Identifying, Recording, and Reporting FGM, which was the catalyst for changes to the UK law on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) Most recently, she campaigned successfully with others for legislation to ban virginity testing. She co-scripted and produced 5 animated films, on the health and psychological consequences of FGM and the role of men in ending FGM in affected communities. The films are translated into 4 local languages.
Janet Fyle MBE
Expert Adviser
United Kingdom