Report Suggests Improvement in Use of Midwifery Skills

Effective use of midwives and other maternity staff is crucial in enhancing the care in maternity care hospitals, which will also result in cost savings for the NHS, a recent report has suggested. The report suggested deployment of midwives particularly for women who are not in the high risk category. According to the data in 2009/10, one out of 10 hospital births in England were led by midwives and the rest were handled by doctors or shared care units.

The report also pointed out that women receiving care from midwives were less likely to be hospitalized after childbirth; even the chances of episiotomy greatly reduced.

The report has suggested the distribution of jobs within maternity teams in an organized manner so that the services of doctors can be used for supporting women at higher risk of health problems. This arrangement will also increase the availability of doctors during times of need.

Anna Dixon, Director of Policy at The King’s Fund said:“Midwives’ time must be used more effectively with an increased use of maternity support workers, doulas providing lay support and specialist nurses. Having sufficient staffing levels is important, but there is a need to rethink how staff are deployed.”



Source-Medindia