Hospital bosses plan maternity shake-up

Date article online: 22/03/2008

Hospital bosses admit turning women in labour away because they are full is not acceptable - and radical action is being taken to stop it happening.

Rochdale Infirmary is one of many hospitals across the country repeatedly forced to close its doors to new admissions because its beds are full or it is short-staffed.

The system is close to breaking point and leaves distressed women giving birth in a different hospital than the one they had in mind.

Figures provided by the Conservatives show that of the nation’s 103 NHS trusts which provide maternity services, 42 had to close units or divert women to another site at least once in 2007 because of capacity problems.

Pennine Acute Trust, which runs Rochdale Infirmary, is due to transfer maternity services from two of its hospitals - Rochdale Infirmary and Fairfield, Bury - to the Royal Oldham Hospital and North Manchester Hospital, both of which will become centres of excellence for maternity.

Oldham will also get a neonatal intensive care unit - one of three in Greater Manchester - to care for some of the region’s sickest babies.

A spokesman said services were spread too thinly, which made it difficult to adapt and cover for issues such as short-term staff illness or an increase in the number of women about to give birth.

He said the decision to close to new admissions was always made by the consultant, senior midwife and manager on the grounds of safety,

“There will be far greater certainty that the unit women are planning to give birth in can take them,” he added.

“There is little as distressing for women about to give birth than being told ‘sorry, although you planned to come here, you can’t.’”

The move is expected to be completed by the end of 2010.