Maternity cuts will leave Melksham mums ‘vulnerable’

Mothers speak out against loss of services

MELKSHAM mothers have raised concerns about the upcoming loss of local maternity services, which they say could leave some mothers feeling ‘vulnerable’ having to travel longer distances to access care and support.

From April, Trowbridge’s midwifery unit will only provide pre- and post-natal services, forcing expectant mothers to travel further afield to give birth. 

Post-natal beds at Chippenham’s midwifery unit will also be phased out over the next 12 months. Instead, women with medical needs will have to stay in post-natal beds further from home in Bath, Swindon or Salisbury.

Local resident, Sam Balecke, who stayed for two nights in one of Chippenham’s post-natal beds after giving birth at Bath’s Royal United Hospital in September last year, told Melksham News, “I think this will put a massive strain on mums. Going into labour is a big thing – to close down our local labour ward is going to add more pressure on mums. You worry about when you are going to go into labour and where you will be – not having your most local birthing unit open is only going to add to that. 

“Bath is okay to get to if you go into labour in the middle of the night, but during the day, traffic can make this difficult.”

About the support she received at Chippenham and the loss of this service, Sam said, “It was great, they helped us massively on our breastfeeding journey, and getting that started. If we didn’t go to Chippenham for those two nights, I don’t know if I’d still be breastfeeding now. They were a massive help.

“If you’ve had a traumatic labour and delivery, Bath don’t want you to stay there as they don’t have the space. So losing the option to go to Chippenham to recover – it will be a big loss.

“I have two older children, and even when I was staying in Chippenham it was a mission to juggle everything. So for mums now, who might have to stay in Swindon or Salisbury, they’ll feel even further away from home – which might make them feel insecure. The distance might also put family off from visiting – and having people around you is one of the most important things, especially if you are receiving support for medical needs.”

Stacey O’Loughlin, whose daughter was born at the Trowbridge birthing unit in 2013 said, “It’s such a shame, and it will be such a loss for the area. We are a big town, and including Trowbridge and Chippenham, that is a lot of women who are going to have to make different arrangements. And there are some people that don’t have the means to travel long distances to other places.

“The Trowbridge birthing unit is iconic, it has been there for such a long time - I was born there, my daughter was born there, and lots of my friends have had babies there. It’s so sad for us to lose it.

“If I was having a baby now I would be really concerned – not only do you have the added stress of having to travel further to give birth, but now there is the loss of the post-natal beds in Chippenham to be concerned about. For the mums struggling with things like  breast feeding or post-natal depression, it will add a lot of pressure on them as a new mum to get up and get back to normal as soon as possible. 

“It puts mums in a vulnerable position. There is so much awareness now of mental health – taking away something as important as these post-natal beds, it will leave mums feeling vulnerable.”

The joint governing bodies of Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Clinical Commissioning Groups (BSW CCGs) approved the maternity cuts at a meeting earlier this month. Paulton’s (Bristol) birthing unit and post-natal beds will also close, whilst the free standing midwifery units in Chippenham and Frome will remain open for births. 

‘Alongside midwifery units’ will be created at Salisbury District Hospital and the Royal United Hospital in Bath.

The BSW CCGs have said that the changes will mean, “equal access to choice for women about where to have their babies, a more effective use of resources, a better supported homebirth service and enhanced antenatal and postnatal care.”

Following the decision, Dr Ruth Grabham, medical director for Bath and North East Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group and governing body member said, “We are very grateful to everyone who gave their time and expertise over the last three years as this proposal was developed and refined. From mums and dads who use the services to clinical experts and local organisations – everyone has helped to steer a path through the complexities of service change.

“We know that in both Paulton and Trowbridge there were strong feelings in support of women continuing to be able to give birth in the existing Free Standing Midwifery Units and some people will be disappointed by today’s (16th January) decision. However this proposal was approved to help us better meet the needs and choices of women and families across the whole of Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire.

“As a result of feedback we have delayed the closure of four of the community postnatal beds to allow more time to work with mums, families and staff to co-design a new community postnatal offer that will meet the needs of local people. The feedback, for example around breastfeeding and mental health support, will also be used to help shape our future maternity services.”

More information on the changes can be found on the Transforming Maternity Services Together website: www.transformingmaternity.org.uk