Tackling inequalities by investing in maternity services and recruiting staff should be a priority for the next Scottish Government, the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) has said.
The RCM has set out five areas it wants Scotland’s political parties to focus on following the Holyrood election to address social deprivation, deliver high-quality maternity care and “ending midwife shortages for good”.
Additional training places for student midwives are also needed in more of Scotland’s universities, with more being done to ensure there are not large geographical variations in staff shortages.
Its election “blueprint” also urges the next government to support NHS staff and help them recover from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic that the RCM describes as having been “brutal” on frontline staff.
READ MORE: NHS Lanarkshire restricts maternity partner visiting amid 'variable approach' to mask adherence
Calling for investment in “birthplaces that are fit for the future”, the trade union and professional body also warns that the pandemic has further exposed inequalities for vulnerable and ethic minority women.
Jon Skewes, external relations director for the RCM, said: “There has been a monumental effort from midwives, maternity support workers, and maternity care assistants through the pandemic.
“It is time to step-up and really invest in them, in their pay and in their working conditions.
“Right now, we have a demoralised and exhausted workforce and women falling through the cracks and not getting the care they deserve.
“Staff are also often working in old, poorly designed buildings that are simply not fit for purpose. The pandemic has exposed the extent and the impact on care of this crumbling infrastructure.”
READ MORE: Glasgow midwife shares memories after 50 years supporting parents
He added: “Tackling deprivation goes way beyond maternity and the wider NHS.
“Fixing it must be done through multiple channels including social care, education, and others.
“Maternity is a very good place to start improving the health of the nation, reduce inequalities and, indeed, save lives that should not be lost.
“This has been a really tough year for the NHS and the people using it as it creaked under the weight of pandemic demands.
“It has also been a remarkable year because of how its staff and the service responded. Now is the time to invest to make it fit for the future.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here