New report is a ‘devastating’ indictment of maternity care in UK, Birth Trauma Association says
A new parliamentary report into birth trauma in the UK has painted a “devastating” picture of maternity care, the report’s author has said.
The new report, entitled Listen to Mums: Ending the Postcode Lottery on Perinatal Care, provides many shocking examples of women who have been traumatised by their birth experience. These include women whose babies have died, or suffered permanent brain damage, as a result of mistakes made during birth, as well as women who have experienced physical injuries that have left them with bladder and bowel incontinence.
In January, the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on birth trauma, chaired by Theo Clarke MP and Rosie Duffield MP, launched the country’s first ever inquiry into birth trauma. The inquiry received written submissions from more than 1,300 parents who shared their stories of traumatic birth, as well as nearly 100 submissions from maternity professionals. It also conducted seven oral evidence sessions, taking testimony from both experts and parents with lived experience.
Lives ruined by the experience of birth
Dr Kim Thomas, CEO of the Birth Trauma Association, who wrote the report, said she had been shocked by the stories submitted by parents: “Hundreds of women told us that their lives had been ruined by their experience of birth: the word ‘broken’ came up frequently. Many told us that they could no longer work because of the injury they sustained, whether that was a physical injury, such as a severe tear causing long-term incontinence, or a psychological injury, leaving women with post-traumatic stress disorder. They also told us that the trauma had affected their ability to bond with their baby, their relationship with their partner and even their relationship with family and friends. The lack of understanding from others meant that these women often felt extremely isolated.”
One of the most upsetting elements of the stories, Dr Thomas said, was that so many women felt that they had not been listened to. “Many women we heard from had told maternity professionals that they were concerned that something had gone wrong in labour, only to be dismissed as being over-anxious,” she said. “This failure to listen to women then resulted in catastrophic outcomes, such as a baby being stillborn.”
Women left on bloodstained sheets
A recurring theme in the report was of poor postnatal care, with women often reporting that they were left to lie on bloodstained sheets, or that they had rung the buzzer for help without having a response. Some were berated for not being able to breastfeed, while not receiving any help to do so.
The inquiry also heard from fathers and non-birthing mothers, many of whom had been left traumatised by their inability to help their distressed partner, and who reported being left in the dark about what was happening during a medical emergency.
The report makes a number of important recommendations for transforming maternity care, including creating a new maternity czar and implementing a single, over-arching strategy that brings together the different plans for improving maternity.
The Birth Trauma Association calls on the government to implement the recommendations in full. “So many women have had their lives destroyed by traumatic birth,” Dr Thomas said, adding: “One in 25 women – about 30,000 a year – develop PTSD after birth. It doesn’t have to be like this, and we call on the government to implement the recommendations in the report so that women receive the good quality maternity care they deserve.”
