Maternity Review wanted by Longford councillors to deliver safe consultant-led care
Councillor Uruemu Adejinmi submitted a motion at the recent monthly Longford County Council meeting to write to the Health Minister, the HSE, the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and local Oireachtas Members.
A local Fianna Fáil councillor has called on Longford County Council to write to the Minister for Health, the HSE, the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and local Oireachtas Members requesting that no further implementation of public-only contracts affecting maternity care proceed until a Maternity Review has been completed and published.
Councillor Uruemu Adejinmi submitted a motion at the recent monthly Longford County Council meeting where she said the council welcomes the objectives of Sláinte care and supports the development of a high-quality, equitable public maternity service.
However, she stated the council notes that Ireland has no standalone private maternity hospitals and the National Maternity Strategy (2016–to-2026) remains under implementation.
Cllr Adejinmi also said the HSE has identified workforce sustainability, consultant leadership, integrated maternity networks and staffing standards as priorities for the next strategy and "women must continue to have confidence in safe, accessible and consultant led maternity care throughout any transition".
The Longford town public representative said accordingly, the council calls for a National Maternity Service Readiness Review before further implementation of consultant contract changes affecting maternity services.
Secondly, the completion and publication of all outstanding actions under the National Maternity Strategy.
Cllr Adejinmi stated the council calls for thirdly the publication of hospital-by-hospital data on consultant staffing, midwifery staffing, waiting times, continuity of care, patient outcomes and patient experience.
She stated the council is looking for detailed implementation plan demonstrating how public maternity services will provide equivalent consultant access, continuity of care and multidisciplinary supports before existing maternity pathways are altered and a "long-term workforce and infrastructure plan for maternity services, including Regional Hospital Mullingar and other regional maternity units serving growing populations".
Cllr Adejinmi said the council further requests that the Minister confirms that future changes to maternity care arrangements will be introduced only where patient safety, service capacity and continuity of care can be clearly demonstrated.
Cllr Seamus Butler seconded the motion and he said it was a fantastic motion and continuity of care was so important.
"As a husband and a father I think it hold us to support this.
"What is at stake is the difference in the private sector, when it was there, and I must say all of our five children were born in Mount Carmel in Dublin, which is no longer a maternity hospital.
"The situation is you cannot select and be guaranteed that the doctor that is appointed, your obstetrician or gynecologist for the process, is going to continue with you throughout the service, whereas in the private you can pay and you have continuity and standing if the person is not available."
Fine Gael Cllr Peggy Nolan, the vice-chair of the Dublin and Midlands health forum, also supported the 'excellent' motion and she spoke about the importance of the issues highlighted.
"You could not be a woman Cllr Adejinmi,, you could not be an Irish person and not support everything you have in this.
"As a woman who has fought staunchly for Sláinte care and what it contains to bring services to the public all my public life I can't but support you strongly enough but I would ask you that we bring this myself, yourself and our colleague Cllr Paul Ross back to the HSE for the minutiae."
Cllr Nolan said there are 19 maternity facilities across the island and there is two specific maternity care ones the Rotunda and Holles Street and she would support Cllr Adejinmi every step of the way and men had concerns as well."
"I will speak to you at the next HSE [Dublin and Midlands health forum] meeting [on July 21] and I will ask Frankie Kenna, the chairman to give you time to raise this because everything that is in it is very relevant women have concerns."
Cllr Paul Ross also supported the motion, but he said maybe some slight amendments could be made.
"I do know cases where women wanted female consultants and then when the baby was born the consultants were on holidays and then we are seeing in the last few weeks in the media insofar as there is private consultants are paying public consultants when they go on holidays and there has been fees passed over.
"And of course we know the Minister is trying at the moment to eliminate consultants using public hospitals and paying no rent, that is another huge issue."
Longford County Council will now write to Health Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill calling for the maternity-care changes.