10 May 2017
You may see or hear media coverage about the temporary suspension of services at Ludlow Midwife-Led Unit (MLU) last weekend. Services at the unit were suspended from 8pm on Friday (5 May 2017) until 8am on Monday (8 May 2017).
The following statement, from Sarah Jamieson, Head of Midwifery at The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, explains the situation:
“The decision to temporarily suspend services at Ludlow MLU over the weekend was not taken lightly, and was made by senior midwives, senior clinicians and Executive Directors.
“We experienced unexpected high levels of staff sickness within our Maternity Service, including at Ludlow MLU. Unfortunately, this staff sickness coincided with high demand at our Consultant-Led Unit in Telford, including some women who needed a high level of care, whilst our other MLUs were also expecting mothers who needed postnatal care. At the point where we suspended services there were no inpatients in Ludlow, Bridgnorth or Oswestry Midwife-Led Units.
“As a result, in line with our policies and procedures to ensure the continued safety of our service, we suspended services at Ludlow MLU over the weekend. Expectant mothers who chose to give birth at Ludlow MLU and were due to give birth in the near future were informed.
“We never take such decisions lightly and we review all risks to ensure the safety of all women using the service. I’d like to again apologise for any inconvenience this has caused.
“We are fully supportive of birth choice and women whose birth is considered to be low risk can choose to give birth at one of our MLUs, at home or at our Consultant-Led Unit in Telford.
“Birth rates at our Consultant-Led Unit continue to rise, whilst the number of women choosing to give birth in our MLUs continues to decline.”