Distress caused by temporary closure of Bridgnorth maternity unit
The temporary closure of Bridgnorth’s maternity unit was brought in without any consultation and has caused considerable distress in the town.
That’s the view of Bridgnorth Town Council, which has written to Shropshire Clinical Commissioning Group raising fears for the future of services in the town.
In her letter, town clerk Anne Wilson said the authority had not been involved in discussions of the future of Bridgnorth MLU – despite previous requests for a seat at the table.
A copy of the letter, addressed to the CCG’s accountable officer Simon Freeman, has also been sent to Simon Wright, chief executive of Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust.
A review of maternity care is being carried out by Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin Clinical Commissioning Groups. But for six months Bridgnorth’s maternity unit is open for appointments only due to staffing issues.
Ms Wilson wrote: “The elected members of Bridgnorth Town Council, who represent the 12,000 residents of our town, including service users of the midwife-led unit, were extremely surprised and distressed to learn that the board of Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust last week suspended all birthing and inpatient postnatal services at the three freestanding midwife-led units serving rural areas in Shropshire.
“The closure of Bridgnorth’s MLU for up to 24 weeks has been introduced with no consultation or prior warning for either service users or key local stakeholders such as this council.”
The letter highlights concern amongst residents that the rural maternity units could close on a permanent basis in order to centralise maternity care.
It also says if accessibility of local antenatal and postnatal care is reduced then women in rural areas would be left with very few choices.
The letter states that stripping back accessible local care would have “profound” implications for the health and wellbeing of women and babies.
It continues: “Following a town council meeting on July 11 the elected members of the council voted in strong support of retaining our vital MLU, and in favour of working constructively with the SaTH and CCG in order to contribute to the consultation into improving maternity provision in the light of the unnecessary deaths review.
“Bridgnorth Town Council wishes to express its objection in the strongest terms against the temporary closure of Bridgnorth Midwife-Led Unit. We also wish to express our deep regret at the lack of consultation before this course of action was taken.
“We specifically sought a role of a formal stakeholder, as the democratically elected body that represents the residents of this town.
“According to the terms of reference of the MLU review, the CCG seeks to consult with the public, service users and key local stakeholders.
“We feel strongly that this has not been fulfilled, or even attempted, during this process.”
The letter asks for a formal invitation to participate in the consultation process on the review for a “second time”.
