Measures being taken nationally to improve standards in maternity care
By Clare Gooch
The Government has recently responded to the independent review into East Kent Maternity services which was led by Dr Bill Kirkup in 2021. Dr Kirkup’s final report was published on 19 October 2022, with some damning conclusions. However, East Kent Maternity services are not the only NHS provider to be under extreme scrutiny. Nottingham University Hospital are now under investigation by Donna Ockenden, whose report is due to be published in the spring of 2024.
Following the published reports, which depict just how severe things are within our maternity services, unprecedented levels of funding to grow the maternity workforce and boost services has been granted by the Government in an attempt to improve the quality of maternity services across the nation.
The Minister for Women’s Health, Maria Caulfield, has announced she will now personally chair a new group overseeing maternity services nationwide. It has been reported that action will be taken on a national level to improve the safety for mothers and their babies within the NHS to ensure maternity and care everywhere is of the highest standard.
The Minister for Women’s Health Maria Caulfield has said “Every woman deserves to feel confident in the care they and their baby receives ”. She continued “I’m determined to see safety standards in maternity and neonatal care improve across the country ”.
It is reported the Maternity and Care National oversight group, led by Maria Caulfield will bring together key people from the NHS and other organisations. It will look at work being carried out by a range of programmes set up to improve maternity and care, including the implementation of Dr Kirkup’s and other recommendations, to ensure they are all aligned and effective.
Maria Caulfield has also appointed Dr Kirkup to lead work with healthcare partners in response to 2 of the key recommendations he made during his investigation at East Kent Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust by helping to ensure that all teams in maternity and care across England can work together more collaboratively to ensure the best quality and compassionate care is provided. This is said to include working with the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) and the Royal College of Midwives (RCM), who have been asked by the Government to support its efforts to promote and improve team-working in healthcare settings and enforce recommendations where possible.
At Switalskis, we support many families who have been affected by poor maternity care. We see first hand the consequences of such poor care and the impact that this has upon many. We feel reassured that some action is now being taken on a national level to ensure the standards of maternity and care improve and are delivered at the highest they can be.
If you have been affected by poor maternity services and you, your partner or your child has suffered as a result, please get in touch for some further advice so that we can begin to support you.
Clare has worked in Medical Negligence for over 10 years. She’s a Senior Associate Solicitor in our Medical Negligence team based in Switalskis’ London office.
