MIDWIVES are worried few women are getting “continuity of carer” throughout their pregnancy, birth and aftercare.
Only a small minority of health bodies across Scotoand, England and Wales provide the service, an audit has found.
Despite the issue being a key theme raised by national maternity reviews, only 15 per cent of trusts and boards reported women see the same midwife for most contacts in the antenatal, intrapartum and postnatal period.
The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) said the figure was “worrying”, saying continuity helps to ensure safe, high-quality care.
The National Maternity and Perinatal Audit, conducted by experts from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG), the RCM, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, also raised concerns over staffing – particularly among registrars – and the number of midwives on antenatal and postnatal wards.
The average number of beds per rostered midwife on these wards – which care for women who need to be in hospital before and after birth – was seven.
But in some units, midwives are caring for as many as 16 women on these wards at once.
The report, based on survey responses from all NHS trusts and Scottish health boards, also found 88 per cent of obstetric units reported a gap in their middle grade rota.
Professor Lesley Regan, president of RCOG, said the results, while promising, showed where “improvements must and should be made”.
She said all women should be able to choose from the full range of birth settings, have continuity of care during pregnancy and access to their electronic maternity records.
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