Medical Negligence Solicitor Calls for Maternity Care Improvements

Specialist medical negligence solicitor, Emma Holt, from Manchester law firm Pannone LLP backs the Healthcare Commission’s recommendations that NHS maternity care needs urgent improvement.

A review of hospital trusts by the Healthcare Commission has found major problems in maternity care, with understaffing critical in some hospitals which have only 23 midwives per 1000 births. In addition, it was revealed that only two-thirds of trusts had a consultant on their wards for 40 hours a week and some trusts only had 2 beds available per 1000 births.

Safety first
Ms Holt said: “Safety should be the paramount concern. Hospitals are not even following the basic standards laid down by the Royal College of Obstetricians. This is completely unacceptable. Complications can arise very quickly and experienced medical staff, both midwives and consultants, should be readily available”.

Maternal deaths
Recent reports have revealed high death rates in some maternity units, with the lives of mothers and babies at significant risk. Ms Holt commented further: “We have seen a worrying increase in the number of maternal deaths from cases we have been involved with over recent months. We support the Healthcare Commission’s recommendations and urge hospital trusts to take heed of the warnings before the situation worsens any further”.

Practical improvements
She concluded: “Practical improvements are needed to remove the threat of life-threatening complications which are escalating out of control. An increase in staffing is vital to these improvements, which will improve safety and should reduce the mortality rate of mother’s and their babies”.

If you or any member of your family have any concerns about maternity care, please contact a medical negligence solicitor at Pannone on Freephone 0800 0382 382. For more information please visit http://www.pannone.com/solicitors-for-you/clinical-negligence.asp

Contact Information

Emma Holt

Medical Negligence Solicitor

Pannone LLP

Contact via E-mail