Shropshire maternity crisis: Explore parents' concerns and shadow will lift
Dominic Robertson takes a look at the background to the report on maternity units in Shropshire.
The latest report on how to manage midwife led maternity units in the county makes difficult, but candid reading.
The report, which was discussed at yesterday’s board meeting of Shrewsbury & Telford Hospitals NHS Trust, recommended closing three of the county’s midwife-led maternity units for up to six months – a move agreed by the board.
It comes as the latest blow to a service that was already under severe pressure – as evidenced by the board report which reveals a lack of staff, claims of reduced confidence in clinical decision making, and a tired and overstretched workforce which is suffering from declining morale.
This all comes against the background of serious concerns about the way investigations into the deaths of babies at the trust in recent years were carried out.
A review into the issue ordered by the Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, earlier this year has delivered a unique pressure by throwing the trust into the national spotlight where it has featured in headline bulletins on the BBC’s 6 O’Clock News and regularly in national newspapers.
The review, which will be carried out by NHS Improvement, was ordered over the concerns of parents, Rhiannon Davies and Richard Stanton, and Kayleigh and Colin Griffiths, and in response to their calls for a full-blown public inquiry into SATH’s maternity services.
Both families have lost newborn daughters, Kate and Pippa, and endured harrowing experiences with the trust, which found its actions severely criticised in both cases.
Only this week Kayleigh delivered an open letter to the trust calling on the board members to consider resigning if they cannot address the concerns over the service.
She said: “Can you imagine what it is like to be a pregnant woman in Shropshire at the moment? It’s terrifying. You owe it to them, and you owe it to us, the already bereaved families of babies who should never have died, to wake up and accept the problems you have, and if you can’t do that you must step down.”
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The latest plan, to close three units in Bridgnorth, Oswestry, and Ludlow, is being put in place because there are not enough staff to run the trust’s flagship consultant led maternity unit at Princess Royal Hospital Telford.
The depth of the concerns were illustrated only last week when the trust’s chief executive, Simon Wright, cancelled a visit to London to speak with staff at the unit.
The trust’s report has also cited the media spotlight as a contributing factor to its problems, and although it may be the case, it does not mean that the focus is not warranted. It states: “Increasing negative media coverage and scrutiny is leading to anecdotal reports of reduced confidence in clinical decision making and subsequent ability to focus and deliver safe care under the current pressures.”
It also says that staff have been less willing to work in the service in light of the coverage. It states the “recent adverse media and continued external scrutiny have resulted in greater staffing challenges on our maternity service”, and that as a result fewer midwives are willing or able to undertake additional shifts.
The report indicates that a new model of maternity care is likely to be developed but without fully addressing what has gone before then the trust will struggle to build confidence.
The sympathies of many will be with the hard working staff in the service who are relying on management to address the past, plan for the future, and provide them with the means to do their job, day-in-day out.
The trust’s own review says the service is safe but can be improved. While this reassurance will no doubt be welcomed, people will still want to read the findings of the NHS Improvement review. What is vital is that the concerns of parents are fully explored, with the findings and potential shortcomings made public. Only then will the shadow currently cast over the trust start to lift.
