Agenda item

This report sets out an update on the Care Quality Commission report into maternity services at Medway Maritime Hospital.  The Chief Executive of Medway NHS Foundation Trust will be present to introduce the report.

Discussion:

The Chief Nurse, Medway NHS Foundation Trust introduced a powerpoint presentation setting out progress since the report of unannounced inspection by the Care Quality Commission into maternity services which was last considered by the Committee on 11 November 2013.

In his introduction he thanked the Chief Clinical Officer, NHS Medway CCG, the Director of Public Health, Medway Council, Healthwatch Medway and the Medway Safeguarding Board for their help over the past few months.  He also referred to visits made by Members of the Committee to the maternity unit and said that the feedback received had been very helpful.  The staff there were enthusiastic and much more positive about their roles.  Those Members who had visited confirmed this.  A number referred to the positive atmosphere in the maternity unit and were impressed at the way the new mothers and their partners were dealt with.

He detailed the work being undertaken by the review group, which he led which had scrutiny provided by a Non-Executive Director, a Governor, an expert by experience and an external midwifery professional advisor.  He then paid tribute to the assistance of the Director of Public Health and her team in contributing to the redesign of the antenatal pathway. The addition of 15 more midwives to the team had also positively affected the morale of the midwifery team.  It was confirmed that the cost of employing 15 more midwives had to be met by the hospital ahead of its original schedule which would evidently be a pressure on the trust’s budget.  He stated that, in addition to the increase in numbers of midwives, a new Chief Pharmacist would start work in approximately six weeks’ time. 

Work was ongoing to refurbish a number of areas including the bereavement suite, which would now have soundproofing.   The very basic equipment checks were now being carried out as part of routine and no assumptions were made in this regard, he emphasised that everything needed to be part of a wider assurance process.

Service users were able to feedback on their experience by using text messaging and this had been very helpful in getting immediate and more direct feedback.  Message boards were also displayed in the maternity unit so that all could see the comments made.  Staffing boards were also in place so that it was clear how many staff should be on duty and how many were actually on duty. 

The Chief Nurse informed the Committee about the statutory role of the Supervisors of Midwives which was being enhanced.  Responding to a question about maintaining high performance in the maternity unit as other pressures were experienced in the hospital, he stated that three areas were crucial in achieving this.  These were leadership, governance and surveillance systems and he was confident that these areas would ensure continuation of the investment made so far in improving the service. 

Reference was made to the Big Lottery Bid and the Director of Public Health explained that Medway was now in the final stage of the bid, which was for `A better start in life which was a programme that increased investment in preventative interventions in pregnancy and early years to improve outcomes for children.  One of the key outcomes from the programme would be to ensure it is much easier for a member of the public to book in to get their antenatal care.  She stated that, even if the bid were to be unsuccessful, the proposed work was sufficiently important to continue with over a more extended period of time.

Members paid tribute to the work being done in the maternity unit, to the enthusiasm and commitment of the staff working there and the Chief Nurse, colleagues and partners in bringing about the improvements.

Decision: 

The Chief Nurse was thanked for his presentation and the report was noted.