A new inquiry reveals the 'harrowing' experiences of women seeking maternity care.
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New mothers have shared their ‘harrowing’ experiences of giving birth in a major report which reveals that women are at risk of long-term injuries following the procedure.
The birth trauma inquiry found that women were “treated as an inconvenience”, and that the number of women dying in pregnancy is at a 20 year high.
Health Minister Maria Caulfield has apologised in response to the report after “shocking poor” maternity services were “frequently tolerated as normal”.
Women told the inquiry of how they were “left to lie in their own blood, urine or excrement” and how midwives berated them for their anxiety as a new mother.
Other women explained how the incompetence of healthcare professionals has caused life altering injuries, which have “destroyed their sense of self-worth.”
The number of women who die during pregnancy is at a 20 year high CREDIT: ASSOCIATED PRESS
Conservative MP Theo Clarke commissioned the inquiry after she feared she would die from giving birth to her daughter Arabella in 2022.
Ms. Clarke told the times “We have listened to mums carefully and applaud their bravery in coming forward, sometimes with horrific testimony of how the system failed them and the mental, physical and economic cost of that failure.
The raft of recommendations we make, especially the appointment of a maternity commissioner, are all designed to end the postcode lottery on maternity services.”
In 2022, the NHS spent £69 billion on payouts for clinical negligence related to maternity and neonatal liabilities.
NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard said: “The experiences outlined by women in this report are simply not good enough.”
She said that NHS England was committed to changing their culture to ensure “women are listened to, their choices respected and care is personalised, equitable and safe”.
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Headline‘Harrowing’ testimonies reveal shortcomings of NHS maternity services
Short HeadlineBirth Trauma inquiry report reveals major shortcomings
StandfirstThe number of women who die during pregnancy is at a 20 year high.
New mothers have shared their ‘harrowing’ experiences of giving birth in a major report which reveals that women are at risk of long-term injuries following the procedure.
The birth trauma inquiry found that women were “treated as an inconvenience”, and that the number of women dying in pregnancy is at a 20 year high.
Health Minister Maria Caulfield has apologised in response to the report after “shocking poor” maternity services were “frequently tolerated as normal”.
Women told the inquiry of how they were “left to lie in their own blood, urine or excrement” and how midwives berated them for their anxiety as a new mother.
Other women explained how the incompetence of healthcare professionals has caused life altering injuries, which have “destroyed their sense of self-worth.”
The number of women who die during pregnancy is at a 20 year high CREDIT: ASSOCIATED PRESS
Conservative MP Theo Clarke commissioned the inquiry after she feared she would die from giving birth to her daughter Arabella in 2022.
Ms. Clarke told the times “We have listened to mums carefully and applaud their bravery in coming forward, sometimes with horrific testimony of how the system failed them and the mental, physical and economic cost of that failure.
The raft of recommendations we make, especially the appointment of a maternity commissioner, are all designed to end the postcode lottery on maternity services.”
In 2022, the NHS spent £69 billion on payouts for clinical negligence related to maternity and neonatal liabilities.
NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard said: “The experiences outlined by women in this report are simply not good enough.”
She said that NHS England was committed to changing their culture to ensure “women are listened to, their choices respected and care is personalised, equitable and safe”.
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