One baby is stillborn every day in Scotland – and understaffed hospitals 'are key factor'

Published on Tuesday 17 November 2009 21:24

BABIES in Scotland are dying because of overstretched staff and pressure on NHS services coupled with a lack of research into stillbirths, campaigners claim today.

Last year, 325 babies were stillborn in Scotland – almost one death every day and a rate that has changed little since the 1980s. A further 168 babies died within four weeks of birth.

Today, Sands, the stillbirth and neonatal death charity, will present a report to the Scottish Parliament setting out the problems to be addressed if more babies' lives are to be saved.

Its concerns include staffing pressures in maternity units and antenatal clinics which delay the possibility of medics identifying a baby that might be struggling and leading to deaths that could be avoided.

Understaffing in neonatal units also means that premature babies are not always getting one-to-one care.

The charity believes there is a lack of research to help understand and prevent stillbirth. It also makes a number of recommendations to help improve the care of mothers and their babies in Scotland, including recruiting and training more midwives and obstetric consultants. Sands chief executive Neal Long said: "Almost 500 babies dying every year in Scotland is a national tragedy.

"For too long, these deaths have been ignored and yet here is compelling evidence to suggest that many babies' lives could be saved with improved delivery of maternity services and increased funding for research.

"Despite Scotland leading the UK in many aspects of maternity resourcing and data collection, stillbirth rates remain at very high levels."

Sands' report points out that one in every 200 babies born in Scotland is stillborn. While rates have dropped since the 1970s, the level of such deaths has plateaued since the 1980s.

The report also says that Scotland has one of the highest perinatal mortality rates – babies who are stillborn or die within the first seven days of life – in Europe.

Sands research manager Janet Scott said there was evidence that Scandinavian countries were making progress in bringing down stillbirth rates, while England and Wales were also starting to see levels drop. But she said many countries were struggling to bring rates down.

Sands said one problem contributing to baby deaths and the lack of adequate care in Scotland was "under-resourced maternity and neonatal services". The report also said there was increasing evidence that many deaths linked to events that happen in labour are potentially avoidable.

Another issue raised was care provided in neonatal units. Out of 53,000 babies born in Scotland each year, about 8,000 are admitted to neonatal units – one in seven babies – with Scotland's premature birth rate higher than in England and Wales, and rising.

But Sands said: "While the pressure on units is increasing, Scottish neonatal units continue to be understaffed and overstretched, resulting in unnecessary transfers of babies and the closure of units to new admissions."

The report said that babies in Scotland were not guaranteed one-to-one nursing in intensive care units.

Jackie Baillie, Scottish Labour's health spokeswoman, said: "It is clear from this report that maternity services are under increasing pressure and there are insufficient midwives.

The challenge is to the Scottish Government to ensure that this is a national priority."

Yesterday, the government said it would give up to 20,000 to Sands to work with health boards on improving support for mothers and fathers after a baby is stillborn.

Public health minister Shona Robison said: "Every baby lost to stillbirth represents a tragedy for their parents and family."

Maternity services let Robbie down, let my family down

LESLEY Ingram is reminded of her stillborn son Robbie every day as she watches his twin, Jamie, now two, flourish.

Ms Ingram, from Rydale, Dumfries, was admitted to her local maternity hospital when she was 32 weeks pregnant, having suffered gestational diabetes and a low-lying placenta. After two weeks she suffered a large bleed and was quickly assessed by staff.

But she said she was not given a scan to check the babies' health, despite doctors only being able to find one heartbeat easily.

Twelve days later she had a routine scan which raised the alarm and led to an emergency caesarean section to deliver the twins. However, Robbie was stillborn.

"The obstetrician who delivered the twins believed that Robbie, because of the deterioration, had died a while back," she said. "They believed he had died that night of the bleed."

Ms Ingram believes staff did not respond properly after she suffered the bleed.

She has since been told that procedures have now changed and any pregnant woman expecting twins who comes in and has a bleed will be immediately scanned.

"I feel that maternity services did let me down," she said. "They let Robbie down, they let my family down.

"Now I am left with a lone twin. He is an amazing little boy but his life is full of 'if onlys'. If only I had been given a scan and they could have perhaps found that Robbie was struggling.

"Maybe a scan would not have saved him, but it could certainly have picked up the fact he was dead, or struggling, so they could have delivered then."

Ms Ingram was also upset by comments made by some hospital staff, including one who said "at least you've got one".

But the 40-year-old praised the midwives who helped care and support her and husband David after their loss.