Shropshire maternity scandal: 1,862 cases now under review
The independent inquiry into maternity care at Shropshire's major hospitals is now looking at 1,862 cases, it has emerged.
Donna Ockenden, who is leading the investigation into baby deaths at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH), today confirmed the figure, which has risen by hundreds of cases in the space of a few months.
A further 496 families have been identified following an ‘open book’ review in 2018 – which largely focused on electronic records, a call for families to come forward and a further search of paper records.
Ms Ockenden has also announced that any further concerns must now be raised directly with the trust, as her team focuses on completing clinical reviews to enable the final report to be published.
"It’s now really important that we focus our efforts on getting all clinical reviews completed so that we can make meaningful recommendations to improve services and give families the answers they have asked for," Ms Ockenden said.
"We intend to have initial, emerging recommendations for maternity services published at the end of the year.
"In order to give ourselves the time to write the final report, any new cases that come to light from now on will need to go directly to the trust, for them to consider, rather than them coming to the maternity review team.”
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The additional families will be written to telling them that their maternity care at the trust has been referred to the independent inquiry.
The letters provide information to enable families to make a choice as to whether they want their care to be reviewed.
Ms Ockenden said SaTH, which runs Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and Telford's Princess Royal Hospital, had worked closely with the review team and provided any information requested.
She added: "I have made a commitment to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care that we will undertake our work with the care and the independence it deserves and we will publish the final report as quickly as we can.
"I want to assure families that their experiences are important to us and that our independent team of midwives and doctors continue to ensure that family voices remain central to everything we do.”
Investigation
Families who wish to raise any concerns about the care they have received can contact the trust at sath.maternitycare@nhs.net or by calling the Patient Advice and Liaison Service on 01952 641222, extension 4382.
The inquiry was launched in 2017 by then Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt.
It followed concerns raised by Rhiannon and Richard Stanton Davies, whose daughter Kate died shortly after birth in 2009, and Kayleigh and Colin Griffiths, whose daughter Pippa died shortly after birth in 2016.
A leaked report into the inquiry last year revealed a catalogue of concerns and that dozens of babies and mothers are thought to have died or been left disabled due to poor care at SaTH.
Last month, West Mercia Police revealed it is also conducting an investigation to explore the alleged poor care and see whether there is evidence to support a criminal case either against the trust or any individuals involved.
Louise Barnett, SaTH's chief executive, has apologised for the distress caused to families, adding: "An apology is not enough.
"What needs to be seen is evidence of real improvement at the trust.
"This is why we are committed to listening to families, our community, and working with Donna Ockenden’s review to ensure lessons are learned and we have a service which the community and our patients can trust."
She said some progress in improving the standards of care for mothers and babies had been made but there is more to do.
