THE future of Westbury’s closest birth centres could be under threat as the Royal United Hospital announce plans to ‘redesign its maternity services’.
The RUH NHS Foundation Trust, which manages birth centres in Trowbridge, Frome and Chippenham, announced it will be looking at the maternity services ‘to make sure we are getting it right for women and families, both now and in the future.’
But campaigners want to make sure the local birth centres stay open and are urging local people to make their views known.
Of the 4,845 babies born with the RUH’s maternity services in 2015/15, 244 were born in Frome, 291 in Trowbridge and 196 in Chippenham.
The Trust says that despite efforts to promote birth centres, it hasn’t seen a sustained increase in the number of mothers choosing to give birth at their local centre, with the majority of babies born at the RUH’s Bath Birth Centre.
The Trust will be holding an informal discussion group at Melksham Assembly Hall on Tuesday 7th March from 1-3.30pm. An online survey is also available for those unable to attend a group session.
Amanda Gell, senior midwifery matron at the RUH said, “ To help us in our planning for the future we want to understand what matters most to those who use our services. We’re really keen to hear from as many people as possible.”
Tillie Mabbutt, who runs the Frome branch of PANDAS Foundation UK, which offers peer support to women suffering from pre and postnatal mental illness said, “At the moment we don’t know how the RUH’s Trust’s plans for the future will affect local birth centres. But any threat of closure or even a cut in opening hours would be hugely detrimental.
“It’s really important to have local midwives for local mothers and also continuity. To have only one or two midwives looking after one woman the whole way through her pregnancy is so important for building relationships and trust, which has a positive impact on mum and baby. If mums have to travel to Bath, they could potentially see a different midwife at every appointment.
“The distance is a huge inconvenience but also can add levels of anxiety, especially for working women, who would have to take time off work to attend appointments. A lot of women already worry their employers will treat them differently because they are pregnant; add to this anxiety, a longer journey to Bath for a checkup and it can make pregnancy very stressful.
“Any decision they make now may save money in the short term but in the long term, it could come back and bite them. The RUH is already under a lot of pressure, it would make no sense to close local units which take the pressure off staff at the main hospitals.
“Bringing babies into the world is fundamental to us and is not something that is ever going to decrease, so our local maternity services must be protected and maintained at current levels to give all parents choice, ease and peace of mind, which in turn gives babies the best start in life.”
