Reports and reviews have highlighted issues with the use and quality of interpreting and translation services in maternity and neonatal care, contributing to poor outcomes and avoidable harm. We have collated and synthesised these issues, with a focus on interpreting services, and have put forward considerations for policymakers.
The Joint Policy Unit has responded to the Change NHS consultation, which will inform a new 10 year plan for the NHS in England.
The National Maternity Safety Ambitions – which aim to halve the 2010 rates of stillbirths, neonatal and maternal deaths and brain injuries and reduce the rate of preterm births from 8% to 6% – expire in 2025. We have considered what appropriate ambitions for reducing perinatal mortality and preterm birth could look like.
Unlike stillbirths and neonatal deaths, the number of miscarriages which occur each year in the UK are not measured or reported. This briefing note outlines what data are currently available in each nation, what improvement work is underway and what further action is required.
The Sands and Tommy’s Joint Policy Unit reviewed 30 reports into maternity and neonatal services across the UK. For each of these reports we identified recommendations relevant to saving babies’ lives and tackling inequalities, and then grouped these into key themes.