Poole LINk Report on Maternity Services
The LINk ran promotional activities throughout the summer 2010, including stands at Poole Park Festival & Family Fun Days etc, gathering feedback from local people. We received lots of comments about maternity services. The responses we received have been quite mixed, so the LINk Stewardship Group decided to take a patient experience approach to gather wider information.
LINk Development Officer, Louise Bate & Stewardship Group member Sarah Sanford took the lead for this project, working with local breastfeeding support groups, PALS (Patient Advice & Liaison Service), Children’s Centres, the Maternity Services Liaison Committee, local third sector & CQC (Care Quality Commission).
From November 2010 to January 2011 we attended 6 local parent & baby sessions / breastfeeding groups and spoke to over 60 people. We also gathered feedback from a further 32 people including midwives and community workers. This report is a summary of our findings on women’s maternity experiences in Poole.
>> Download the full LINk Report on Maternity Services here
How did Poole Hospital Respond?
We received a response from Poole Hospital in March 2011, which was as follows:
Re: LINk Report on Poole Maternity Services-February 2011
Thank you and members of the LINk for undertaking a report on the maternity services of the Trust. We welcome working in partnership and are always keen to hear the views of those who have contact with our services or who speak on behalf of patients.
In my response I will address the recommendations first as they are the substance of the report. I will then provide some comments on accuracy and lastly make a couple of recommendations from the Trust for the LINk to consider.
Recommendation 1: Put together a bedside booklet of ward information, including details on where to get a cup of tea, what to expect when you’re in the unit, information about breastfeeding & how to give your feedback etc. We feel that this could have other advantages for the Trust, for example cutting down re-admittance rates. The LINk would be happy to work with you to create this information booklet.
The maternity services do have a bedside booklet/leaflet, I am sorry that some of your respondents were not aware. We note the helpful comments about what could be included in this booklet and will review its content in the light of those and other comments. We will aim to produce a revised booklet by 31st May 2011.
Recommendation 2: Low staffing levels have seriously affected staff morale, people’s experience of the unit and their choice of birth plan. The Trust stated in the Daily Echo, 30/9/10, that an additional 23 members of maternity staff will be employed. Please can you confirm this and give us some more details about the posts, when they’ll be filled and how staffing levels will be monitored in the future.
We accept that at times staffing levels have not kept pace with an increasing workload. The Board of Directors have recognised recent gaps in staffing levels and as you rightly pointed out have approved the recruitment of 14 extra midwives, 2 additional medical consultants and 7 theatre workers to free up midwives from theatre duties. Recruitment to these posts is underway and the response to our adverts has been strong. We have already been able to fill some of the posts. We monitor staffing levels on a shift by shift basis in the maternity unit and on a monthly basis at Trust level with a quarterly review of performance that is presented to the Board of Directors.
Recommendation 3: We’ve been told that the one day ante-natal talks at St Marys Maternity Unit have been stopped, because of low staffing levels. The feedback we’ve gathered about these sessions is very positive, women told us they felt more relaxed having been on a tour of the unit. The LINk recommends that these sessions are re-instated.
Thank you for your positive comments about ante-natal classes. It is correct that on one or two occasions classes have been cancelled but that has been because of last minute staff sickness. We have recently reviewed our cover arrangements and now have in place the option to cover from a new team of education midwives. This will ensure continuity of these classes.
Recommendation 4: We understand that the Trust has a pot of money available to refurbish the unit. The LINk has gathered a number of practical suggestions to improve the look and feel of the unit. We therefore recommend you spend some of the refurbishment funds on new nursing pillows, changing the delivery suite door, re-decorating the post natal ward & waiting areas and improving the windows in the unit.
Thank you for these comments on the fabric of the building and nursing pillows. The Trust has invested money to maintain the fabric of the building and a recent redecoration of the whole unit has been completed, I hope your members will appreciate this when they next visit. The next priority is the refurbishment of the obstetric theatres which starts this month. During that programme the doors of the delivery suite will be replaced. We note the comments about pillows and will review what needs to be provided including any replacements.
Recommendation 5: Ongoing feedback about the unit will help the Trust to continually improve services. The LINk is happy to help the Maternity Unit devise a more effective way of gathering feedback in the future.
Thank you for the offer of help. We current have a variety of ways in which feedback is gathered but would be very pleased to discuss with you how best to involve the LINk.
Recommendation 6: The LINk recommends the unit work towards UN Baby Friendly Initiative status, or equivalent, as recommended in NHS SW Strategic Framework 2008 to 2011.
We have committed to the baby friendly initiative and in early March had confirmation from the lead at NHS South West saying “I will be able to assure the Baby Friendly Initiative that the unit is now very committed to achieving this accreditation”.
For the record I would also make the following comments on accuracy:
- Number of deliveries is 4600
- We are not cutting down on midwives
- We are not downgrading midwives
- Morale is not very low, the maternity staff are working very hard and constructively to ensure mothers, babies and family have the best possible care.
Lastly, receiving reports, although welcome, is never as satisfactory as working in partnership addressing issues as they arise and finding solutions together. The Trust therefore recommends that the LINk considers joining the Maternity Services Liaison Committee which actively engages with the Trust. Secondly we recommend that LINk discuss with me and the Head of Midwifery how we can include the LINk in planning our future maternity services.
I hope the above answers the issues you have raised and provides assurance that the Trust is committed to providing high quality maternity services. I look forward to our ongoing discussions.
Yours sincerely
MR MARTIN SMITS
Director of Nursing & Patient Services
For more information
For more information about this project, please contact Louise Bate, email louise.bate@helpandcare.org.uk.