Exclusive:SNP under maternity downgrade pressure as mothers face travelling hundreds of miles for neonatal care

SNP ministers are under pressure to rethink a controversial downgrade of maternity services amid fears mothers from the Central Belt could be sent to Aberdeen

Mothers have spoken out about the threat of having to travel hundreds of miles for specialist neonatal services following the downgrade of a Central Belt neonatal unit.

The Scottish Government plans to downgrade the facility at University Hospital Wishaw as part of a strategy that would reduce the number of specialist units across Scotland from eight to three.

The plan would see the services being provided at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow, Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and Aberdeen Maternity Hospital.

Children Erin McLay and Kai Johnstone play as Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar, deputy Jackie Ballie and candidate Davy Russell meet with local parents including Amanda Todd (left) raising concerns about the potential downgrade of services at Wishaw General Hospital (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) | Getty Images

But mothers who have relied on specialist services at Wishaw have said patients would be left with no choice but to travel to Aberdeen or England, or even as far as Ireland, to receive the crucial care they require because of the severe pressure the maternity units in Glasgow and Edinburgh are already under.

READ MORE: SNP downgrade of neonatal unit is a monumental mistake

The plans to remove specialist neonatal services from University Hospital Wishaw has become a key issue on the doorstep ahead of the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election, which takes place on Thursday.

The Scottish Government said that the vast majority of premature babies require care which will continue to be delivered in local neonatal units and on postnatal wards under the plans.

Approximately 120 babies are born under 27 weeks gestation in Scotland each year of which the Scottish Government believe around half will be impacted by the proposed changes.

University Hospital Wishaw | NationalWorld

Scottish Labour has pledged to save the specialist unit if it forms the next government.

Linsay Hamilton, who herself has been a patient at the neonatal unit in Wishaw, has warned over mothers from the Central Belt having to be transferred to Aberdeen or “shipped off to Ireland” amid current pressures on maternity units in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Ms Hamilton added: “We’ve heard from staff who are saying actually in Glasgow and Edinburgh, it’s very likely that they’re always full and they’re always really busy so it would be Aberdeen.

READ MORE: Sisters thank Wishaw neonatal team for life-saving treatment

“If you think about the areas that Aberdeen has got to support, it will just be adding to the pressure on already under-pressure services.”

Amanda Todd from South Lanarkshire, has lifted the lid on being just hours away from being transferred to Dublin to give birth before a bed was found for her at the 11th hour.

Highlighting her experience in 2021, Ms Todd said: “I was told they didn’t have any bed for me or the baby.

“The day before I was being transferred in the morning, luckily there was a space in the ICU for her. Otherwise, we were going to Dublin.

“We were told that if we hadn’t had the room, you were over in Dublin. It was just really scary.”

Tammy Johnstone holds three year old Kai as Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar, deputy Jackie Ballie and candidate Davy Russell meet with parents and Wishaw neonatal campaigners (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Tammy Johnstone said it would be “traumatic” to be forced to travel long distances.

She added: “You just wouldn’t cope with going to Aberdeen. Even if you are a driver, where’s the finances coming from?”

Ms Johnstone said she was not allowed to put her hands on her son, Kai, “for 72 hours after birth” due to how sick he was during a lengthy stay in Wishaw.

She added: “He was four weeks old before I was allowed to physically pick him up.

“How would he have been put in any ambulance and travelled anywhere, let alone hours up to Aberdeen? Doing things like that and transporting them at such an early age while they are so fragile can cause everlasting damage.”

Scottish Labour deputy leader, Jackie Baillie, has criticised the Scottish Government for pushing ahead with condensing specialist services.

Scottish Labour deputy leader Dame Jackie Baillie | PA

She warned that “Glasgow currently can’t cope with the numbers they have going to them” adding that Wishaw was being used as an overflow for the city.

She said: “The reality is Glasgow and Edinburgh cannot cope with additional patients coming from Wishaw.

“The Government had a choice. The report that they commissioned recommended anything between three and five specialist neonatal units. They could have decided to have four and kept Wishaw, because if you look at the population of Scotland, the bulk of it is across the Central Belt, you need the capacity of Glasgow, Wishaw and Edinburgh operating together to cover all of that and including the south of Scotland.

“To suggest that somebody from Wishaw, who is very ill, or potentially has the smallest, sickest babies, should travel to Aberdeen is just nonsense - it’s just clinically inappropriate.

“We are in danger of doing the wrong thing. It is not just the babies, but some of the mums might well end up dying as a consequence of this. We cannot afford for that to happen.”

Deputy First Minister and SNP MSP Kate Forbes gave birth to her daughter Naomi in 2022.

Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes with SNP candidate for Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse, Katy Loudon | Getty Images

Speaking to The Scotsman, Ms Forbes said: “My primary interest is in the safety of the littlest babies that we are supporting through the National Health Service.

“When a clinician says that the safest option for this little baby is at a specialist unit at another location, then I think politicians need to listen to that clinician.

“If something were to happen to that baby after a politician had overturned clinical advice, then I don’t think that politician could live with themselves.

“My primary interest is to deliver services as close to people as possible but when clinical advice is clear that protecting the littlest, most vulnerable patients requires a slight change in service, I think we need to take that seriously.”

The NHS and the future of maternity services at Wishaw have been key issues on the doorsteps during the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election.

READ MORE: Tragic deaths of three newborn babies avoidable, as 'trigger list' among 11 inquiry recommendations

Scottish Labour candidate, Davy Russell, warned that “people are very anxious”.

He added: “Why are they closing down Wishaw neonatal - an award-winning unit with top staff, top quality services? The Scottish Government should be hanging its head in shame.”

SNP candidate, Katy Loudon, has stressed that the advice of medical professionals should be paramount.

She said that mothers would “crawl over hot coals” and “would fly to the moon…to make sure their child was receiving whatever they needed”.

She added: “It’s really important when we talk about the smallest and the sickest babies, they are receiving world-class treatment.”

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Lynne Huckerby, NHS Lanarkshire deputy director of acute services, said: “We understand that national discussions around neonatal capacity might be concerning but we want to reassure families that the safety and wellbeing of mothers and their babies remain our highest priority.

“Currently, in some circumstances, mothers and babies are transferred to other maternity units to ensure they receive the appropriate level of care in the most suitable clinical setting. All neonatal units work collaboratively to ensure that capacity is available for babies.

“Where local neonatal capacity is stretched, transfer arrangements are made through the Scottish Ambulance Service or Scottish Neonatal Transport Service. These situations are managed on a case-by-case basis. Transfers to distant locations are only considered when absolutely necessary and no closer options are available. We are not aware of any cases where a transfer to Dublin has been necessary.”

READ MORE: Safety concerns found at maternity unit at major Scottish hospital as NHS health board given warning

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Local neonatal units, including Wishaw, will continue to provide care to the vast majority of babies who need it, including a level of intensive care. No neonatal units are closing as part of these plans.

“The decision to create three national Neonatal Intensive Care Units has been made in line with strong evidence and advice from expert clinicians that care for babies at highest risk is safest in units that treat a higher number of patients.

“These three units will offer specialist and complex care in fewer centres for the most pre-term and sickest babies, improving health outcomes and saving lives.”