News from our partners: Mums confident in maternity staff, survey finds

News from our partners Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH)

New mums in Shropshire are confident in the care they receive during labour and birth, a new survey has found.

The 2018 survey of maternity care, carried out by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) also found that women using services at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH) were treated with dignity and respect during labour and birth.

The CQC survey highlights women’s views on all aspects of their maternity care from the first time they saw a clinician or midwife, during labour and birth, through to the care provided at home in the weeks following the arrival of their baby.

SaTH, which runs the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, scored 8/10 or higher in 65% of the questions asked. Of the 33 questions in which SaTH achieved this score, almost half scored 9/10 or higher.

Sarah Jamieson, Head of Midwifery at SaTH, said:

“Mums told us they had confidence and trust in the staff caring for them during labour and birth (9.0/10 – a rise from 8.9 in 2017) which is the most important thing for any new mum. They also told us they were treated with dignity and respect during labour and the birth (9.3/10).

“Mums told us that they had a way to contact their midwife and if they needed to do so, they were given the help they needed and were spoken to in a way they could understand.

“Mums also told us that if their partner or someone else close to them was involved in their care during labour, they were involved as much as the mum wanted them to be.

“Following the birth, mums said they were able to contact a midwife and, again, if the needed to do so they were given the help they needed. They also told us they were asked about how they were feeling emotionally following the birth of their baby, which is a vital part of their care.”

There were some questions where scores fell, but in four of those seven areas SaTH still scored better than 8/10. SaTH performed better than most other trusts in one question (cleanliness of room/ward) and there were no questions where the Trust performed worse than most other trusts.

Sarah said:

“We will continue to seek to improve in all areas, not just those where our scores were relatively low, but also in those areas where we performed well, to continue to provide the best possible experience for mums, babies and their families.”