Maternity Services Unit in crisis Bridlington Hospital |
Here is the letter as it arrive at my home today 10 July 2007 Dear Mr. Pilling (Chairman) Save Bridlington Hospital Campaign Action Group I support wholeheartedly your Campaign to Save Bridlington Hospitals Maternity Service, however for contractual reasons of accountability I wish to remain anonymous. If this letter is at all useful share it with whom ever you wish, including the Press, Radio & Television. I do hold lots of information with regards to the hospital and this letter is genuine and from the heart of not only myself but many midwives across the region who are in a similar position. We are not, I repeat not able to do the job we were trained to do ad we a voice. Regards………A very disgruntled Midwife Maternity Services Unit in crisis Bridlington Hospital Urgent Respond NOW! As a midwife that has left the NHS after over twenty years of service, I felt it important to put down on paper some of my thoughts about what is happening to your maternity unit in Bridlington. I have watched an excellent maternity service that met the needs of the local population, systematically destroyed by lack of commitment from the trusts management team to provide adequate funding, staffing and resources. The relationship that women in Bridlington have with their midwife develops over the months of their pregnancy, which forms a firm foundation for an equal partnership based on trust. This, as the research shows, makes for good outcomes and positive experiences for everyone involved. In Bridlington the hard working midwives are grasping onto a system that does not facilitate this ethos. Gone are the days of community midwives working in partnership with GP's, gone is the 24 hour hospital delivery service, gone is the option to deliver in your home town. Don't let them fool you that home birth is a real and viable option, to provide a safe home birth service you need adequate expert midwives, medical support for mum and baby, robust systems for speedy transfer into hospital. I found the recent government announcement that 'all women should be given the option of home birth' laughable...This is a very large rural community 18 miles from the nearest equipped hospital.. .wake up before people start to die!! We need a maternity unit in Bridlington fit for purpose. I appreciate cost is an issue in today's climate and Bridlington was an expensive service, but I would ask the chief executive to weigh up the cost of a baby's life against providing the service that the families in Bridlington need. All midwives share a very clear vision that every UK woman from whatever background and socio-economic status will have the opportunity to be provided with a maternity service built upon choice, information and partnership. We all aim for greater satisfaction for mum's; an increase in the normal birth rate; a reduction in caesarean section rate; increased breastfeeding rates, reduced costs of maternity service ,fewer incidences of postnatal depression. As a community, we should all have a vested interest in a maternity service that genuinely meets the needs of all women who use it, including the next generation. Please help to save the Maternity Unit in Bridlington. Write to your local MP the Right Honorable Greg Knight MP, and send copies of your letter to the: Minister Responsible for Maternity Services: Also send letters to: the Chief Executive Mr. Iain McInnes Scarborough & North Yorkshire NHS Healthcare Trust Scarborough General Hospital NHS Trust. Bridlington & District Hospital I urge everyone to write and to tell them you would like to Save Bridlington Hospitals Maternity Unit and have the option to deliver your baby in your home town which is your right !! |
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