National survey reveals positive feedback for Morecambe Bay maternity services

Mums who gave birth at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary and Furness General Hospital in Barrow were asked for their feedback as part of the national Adult Maternity Survey 2021.

In the survey, conducted each year on behalf of the Care Quality Commission (CQC), people were asked 52 questions scored on a scale from 0 to 10.

Following national comparison of the results, the CQC identified UHMBT as performing ‘better than expected’ in the survey because the proportion of women who answered positively to questions about their care during labour and birth was significantly above the national average.

Aaron Cummins, Chief Executive, UHMBT, said: “There is a lot to be proud of in this feedback we have received from users of our maternity service, including the high-quality communication between staff and patients and the access we have offered to partners of those giving birth.

“This new patient feedback reaffirms the high level of compassionate care and emotional support given by colleagues in our maternity teams, and is a fantastic platform for us to build on as we continue our improvement work.”

UHMBT’s result was ‘much better than expected’ than most trusts in England for the question ‘Thinking about your stay in hospital, if your partner or someone else close to you was involved in your care, were they able to stay with you as much as you wanted?’, with a score of 7.3.

Other highlights included:

*A score of 9.3 for the question ‘During labour and birth, were you able to get a member of staff to help you when you needed it?’

*A score of 9.2 for the question ‘Did the midwife or midwifery team that you saw or spoke to take your personal circumstances into account when giving you advice?’

*A score of 9.1 for the question ‘During your antenatal check-ups, did your midwives ask you about your mental health?’

The trust’s results were better than most trusts around the country in 16 questions, about the same for 34 questions, and there were no questions where UHMBT was worse than most trusts.

The survey reflects the experiences of women who gave birth during January and February 2021. Researchers received 166 responses from UHMBT patients.

Bridget Lees, Executive Chief Nurse, UHMBT, said: “All colleagues working in our maternity service should be very proud of this positive feedback from the mums we care for.

“The survey responses highlight excellent communication between staff and patients, and a good understanding of mums’ needs in areas such as postnatal mental health. It also indicated where we need to do further work, including improving advice to mums on feeding their baby, and ensuring staff show an awareness of mothers’ medical history during antenatal check-ups.

“This survey covers the period of the third Covid-19 national lockdown, and it is particularly impressive that colleagues in the maternity service delivered such a caring service during this particularly challenging period.

“The teams are still working hard to improve the services they offer; and I know that this feedback will be a welcome boost for them as they continue that work for the benefit of families across Morecambe Bay.”

For more information, and to read the survey results in full, visit the CQC website here.