Edinburgh Royal Infirmary maternity service criticised

A damning report by inspectors on Edinburgh's maternity services has highlighted staffing shortages which caused concerns about patient safety, women unable to summon help because of a lack of call bells and others waiting up to 29 hours for labour to be induced.

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The report by NHS Healthcare Improvement Scotland identified 26 areas where it said the required standards had not been met.

And it described staff being in tears as they told of understaffing and feeling undervalued. They also spoke of a negative culture, a lack of visible senior management and a “sub-optimal” skills mix.