City hospitals recruit midwives from South Africa

NUH's maternity services have been rated inadequate by the Care Quality Commission

Eighteen midwives have been recruited from South Africa as part of efforts to improve maternity services at Nottingham's hospitals.

Nottingham University Hospitals Trust’s (NUH) said it had faced problems recruiting for the roles.

Its maternity services have been rated "inadequate" by the Care Quality Commission, with an independent review led by Donna Ockenden also under way.

The midwives will start work in May.

The issue was discussed at a Nottinghamshire County Council health scrutiny committee on Tuesday, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Anthony May, who joined NUH as its new chief executive in September 2022, told the committee there was a “strong and senior commitment in the trust to resolve inadequacies”, adding that it meets with Ms Ockenden every three months.

Labour councillor Michelle Welsh said her maternity experience at NUH was being looked at as part of the Ockenden review.

'We want action'

“What has happened has utterly devastated lives," she said.

“It changed me, I am a shadow of the person I used to be because of what happened to me and the fact that I work with these families and see it every day."

Ms Welsh also referred to the case of Wynter Andrews, which saw NUH fined £800,000 last month for failing to provide safe care to the baby and her mother Sarah Andrews.

“This isn’t something that happened overnight - this crisis started years ago," she said.

“Your own midwives sent a letter to the board. Some of them are still in place now – and that letter was fundamentally ignored.

“You apologised to families and they appreciate that, but we don’t want sorry, we want action."

Mr May acknowledged the trust "failed the staff as well as the Andrews family and baby Wynter", adding there is now a “strong sense of accountability amongst board members”.