Mother helped to rate maternity care
Maternity services used by mothers and babies from the Advertiser area have been rated in an independent review.
Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust, which runs King’s Mill Hospital, Sutton-in-Ashfield, was rated excellent by the Healthcare Commission.
It was one of only two trusts in the East Midlands to obtain the highest rating of best performing, which means it scored better than most other trusts in a range of key areas.
Chesterfield Royal Hospital Trust was the other.
The review, carried out in response to concerns about maternity services, used 25 indicators, ranging from the type of scans women received to staffing levels and the number of times a woman had contact with a midwife after going home.
It included information based on questionnaires completed by women who gave birth in February last year.
They were asked to rate their care from the time they first accessed maternity services to the last contact they had with their midwife.
The review highlighted the trust’s high percentage of natural births, with the caesarean section rate one of the lowest in the country at 15%.
The home birth rate of 6% was also above the national average.
Nottingham University Hospitals Trust, which runs the Queen’s Medical Centre and Nottingham City Hospital, was rated as better performing.
This means it demonstrated good performance in some key areas, which was better than many other trusts, but there was scope for improvement.
It scored excellent for clinical focus, which looks at whether the trust has strong processes and practices.
It was rated good for women centred care, which looks at whether women are informed, counselled and supported.
It was fair for efficiency and capability, which looks at whether there is adequate funding to provide an acceptable service and whether management and improvement processes ensure women get the best care for money spent.
The United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust, which runs Lincoln County Hospital, was also classed as better performing overall.
