Maternity Matters: Choice, access and continuity of care in a safe service DH INFORMATION READER BOX Policy Estates HR/Workforce Performance Management IM & T Planning Finance Clinical Partnership Working Document purpose Policy Gateway reference 7586 Title Maternity Matters: Choice, access and continuity of care in a safe service Author Department of Health/Partnerships for Children, Families and Maternity Publication date April 2007 Target audience PCT CEs, NHSS Trust CEs, SHA CEs, Care Trust CEs, Foundation Trust CEs, Medical Directors, Directors of PH, Directors of Nursing, Local Authority CEs, Directors of Adult SSs, PCT PEC Chairs, NHSS Trust Board Chairs, Special HA CEs, Directors of HR, Directors of Finance, Allied Health Professionals, GPs, Communications Leads, Emergency Care Leads, Directors of Children’s SSs, Royal Colleges, Heads of Midwifery, Commissioners, Obstetricians, Midwives Circulation list Voluntary Organisations/NDPBs Description Maternity Matters: Choice, access and continuity of care in a safe service outlines a national framework for local improvements to choice, access and continuity of care in maternity services. It highlights how commissioners, providers and maternity professionals will be able to use the health reform agenda to shape provision to meet the needs of women and their families. A self-assessment tool for commissioners to identify the needs of their population accompanies the document. Cross reference National Service Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services; Every Child Matters: Change for Children; Making it Better: For Mother and Baby Superseded documents N/A Action required N/A Timing N/A Contact details Pat Parris Partnerships for Children, Families and Maternity Wellington House 135–155 Waterloo Road, London SE1 8UG Tel 020 7972 1301 For recipient’s use Contents Foreword 2 Executive summary 5 1. Introduction 8 Policy commitment to maternity services 8 Influences on current service provision 10 2. The maternity services commitment 12 The national choice guarantees 12 Accessibility and integration of services in community settings 14 Continuity of midwifery care 15 Considerations to meet the commitment 16 3. Achieving the maternity services commitment by 2009 17 Local commissioning framework 17 Tariffs for commissioning high quality and innovative services 21 High quality and safe services 22 Skilled workforce 24 Monitoring framework 26 4. Roles and responsibilities 27 5. Conclusion 32 Appendices APPENDIX A: Considerations for commissioners and local providers 33 APPENDIX B: Reorganising maternity services 36 APPENDIX C: Building your local workforce 38 APPENDIX D: Impact assessment statement 46 APPENDIX E: Glossary 47 APPENDIX F: References 50 1 Foreword Giving birth to a healthy, happy baby is one of the most normal but supremely rewarding experiences of life. Millions of women and their partners are able to do this in NHSS facilities, and many exercise choice around how and where they have their child. We want that positive experience for everyone. Good maternal health and high quality maternity care throughout pregnancy and after birth can have a marked effect on the health and life chances of newborn babies, on the healthy development of children and on their resilience to problems encountered later in life. In 2005, the Government underlined the crucial importance of promoting such excellence in maternity care through its commitment to offer all women and their partners, a wider choice in maternity care. This commitment builds on our earlier vision for a modernised, woman-focused and family-centred, maternity service as described in the maternity standard of the National Service Framework (NSF) for Children, Young People and Maternity Services. This sets out the need for flexible services with a focus on the needs of the individual, especially those who are more vulnerable or disadvantaged. It also emphasises the need for all women to be supported and encouraged to have as normal a pregnancy and birth as possible. Offering choice over where and how to give birth will lead to the more flexible, responsive and accessible maternity services that we envisaged in the NSF. New and different types of care will be developed and designed to meet the needs of all women; but particularly those women and families who need additional support. I also believe that increasing choice will improve the safety, quality and family friendliness of maternity services and encourage good services to improve even more. Sadly some of our most deprived communities, have not always been well served in their maternity care. We want to change that. We want to ensure that the needs of these women, their partners and their families are treated with equal importance and respect. 2 Foreword High quality maternity care is not just about good professional care that ensures a healthy and safe pregnancy. It also involves access to a wide range of varied services that should work in partnership to help equip mothers and fathers with the skills they require to become confident and caring parents. The future belongs to our children, with their mothers and fathers as custodians. Maternity Matters sets the context and vision for maternity care and implementation will empower, engage and involve parents in ensuring that every child has an equal, confident and healthy start to family life. Patricia Hewitt Secretary of State for Health Every parent knows how much maternity matters. Bringing a new baby into the world is a truly special but also challenging experience. The quality of the advice, support and care provided from the early stages of pregnancy to the initial period of a baby’s life is important for all families but especially those parents most at risk. Antenatal and postnatal care are crucial in ensuring parents feel adequately supported and equipped with the skills and knowledge to give their child the best possible start in life. This exciting vision for the future of maternity services will enable the NHS to deliver the Government’s commitment to offer choice to every parent by the end of 2009. Choice, quality and safety must be at the heart of a 21st century maternity service and must become a reality for all including those at the greatest risk as a result of health inequalities. 3 Maternity Matters: Choice, access and continuity of care in a safe service This framework is produced against the background of a public debate which too often fails to acknowledge that the vast majority of parents express a high level of satisfaction with care provided by midwives, nurses, doctors, health visitors and support staff on the frontline of the NHS. However, we accept there is still a great deal more to do. I believe individualised care offered by a midwife, specialist support provided to those most at risk and normal birth without medical intervention will become a more realistic option for every parent. Maternity should be integral to local early years strategies and where necessary, services should be reorganised to secure a choice of high quality, safe maternity provision in every locality. Maternity Matters is an ambitious and practical framework which responds to the expectations of today’s parents and asserts the status and value of the professionals who provide the support and medical expertise. In a wider context, Maternity Matters is the foundation of Every Child Matters. It recognises that maternity care is the earliest intervention of them all and getting it right for babies and parents is an important part of supporting families and building our future national success. Ivan Lewis MP Minister for Care Services 4 Executive summary The aim of health reform in England is “to develop a patient-led NHS that uses available resources as effectively and fairly as possible to promote health, reduce health inequalities and deliver the best and safest healthcare”1. For maternity services this means providing high quality, safe and accessible services that are both women- focused and family-centred. In 2005, the Government underlined the importance of providing high quality, safe and accessible maternity care through its commitment to offer all women and their partners, a wider choice of type and place of maternity care and birth. Building on this commitment, four national choice guarantees will be available for all women by the end of 2009 and women and their partners will have opportunities to make well- informed decisions about their care throughout pregnancy, birth and postnatally. The national choice guarantees described in this document are: 1. Choice of how to access maternity care 2. Choice of type of antenatal care 3. Choice of place of birth – Depending on their circumstances, women and their partners will be able to choose between three different options. These are: • a home birth • birth in a local facility, including a hospital, under the care of a midwife • birth in a hospital supported by a local maternity care team including midwives, anaesthetists and consultant obstetricians. For some women this will be the safest option 4. Choice of place of postnatal care As well as the choice of local options, a woman may choose to access maternity services outside her area with a provider that has available capacity. In addition, every woman will be supported by a midwife she knows and trusts throughout her pregnancy and after birth. 5 Maternity Matters: Choice, access and continuity of care in a safe service The priority for modern maternity services is to provide a choice of safe, high quality maternity care for all women and their partners. This is to enable pregnancy and birth to be as safe and satisfying as possible for both mother and baby and to support new parents to have a confident start to family life. For some, especially the more vulnerable and disadvantaged, the outcomes are unacceptable. Some women are up to 20 times more likely to die from a pregnancy related complication than other women and infant mortality rates are higher in more deprived areas of the country and in more vulnerable or disadvantaged groups.