Health inspectors raise the alarm over hospital maternity services

Inspectors raised "serious concerns" with both NHS bosses and the Scottish Government after carrying out an unannounced inspection of the maternity unit at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.

- by Diane King

Staff at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh's maternity unit told healthcare inspectors about a 'suboptimal skills mix' as well as low staffing levels

Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) said staff at the hospital-one of the country's largest maternity units-spoke about their "overwhelming feeling of helplessness, frustration and worry for not only patient, but staff safety".

Staff reported a "suboptimal skills mix" as well as low staffing levels, telling inspectors that this led to "challenges in providing and maintaining one-to-one care for women within the labour ward".

Meanwhile, a review of incident reports showed "evidence of medication errors occurring involving student midwives", the report also revealed.

Donna Maclean, chief inspector at HIS, said: "During this inspection, we escalated serious concerns within NHS Lothian to senior staff and the Scottish Government. These concerns related to culture, oversight of patient safety and staff wellbeing within Edinburgh Royal Infirmary maternity services."

After their visit in June this year, inspectors told how staff highlighted a "negative culture" in maternity services, with a lack of visible senior management, leading to concerns over patient and staff safety.

Employees there "expressed feeling frustrated at staffing levels", the HIS report said, with concerns from workers who feared this "left areas short-staffed and staff unsupported".

The report went on: "Staff told us this presented a safety risk for women, babies and families within their care which they raised on multiple occasions with managers."