Health board work ‘on track’
CWM Taf Morgannwg University Health Board’s maternity services are “firmly on track” to deliver the improvements needed to ensure safe and high-quality care, a new report has revealed.
A HEALTH board’s maternity services are “firmly on track” to deliver the improvements needed to ensure safe and highquality care, a new report has revealed.
Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board came under fire 12 months ago after a series of catastrophic failings were identified at its maternity units in Prince Charles and Royal Glamorgan hospitals.
An investigation by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecology (RCOG) and the Royal College of Midwives – prompted by a consultant midwife who was concerned by an apparent under-reporting of serious incidents, including deaths of babies – unearthed a series of wide-ranging concerns.
They discovered that maternity services were “under extreme pressure”, “dysfunctional” and were putting families and babies at risk.
As a consequence, the health board’s maternity services were placed in special measures – the highest level of government control.
In response to the damning findings published a year ago, an oversight panel chaired by former chief constable Mick Giannasi was created by the Welsh Government to oversee improvements.
On Wednesday, the third of the panel’s quarterly reports – covering January, February and March 2020 –was published, painting a largely positive picture of improvement.
It states that not only is the health board “firmly on track” to deliver against the Royal Colleges’ recommendations, but also, in time, “to deliver a maternity service which they, their staff and their communities can be proud of”.
The report states: “That is not to suggest that the job is done and further challenges and obstacles will undoubtedly materialise along the way. However, in the panel’s opinion, the health board now has the right resources, the right mechanisms and the right people in place to deliver the continuous improvement which is necessary to achieve that.”
The panel found that the health board has now delivered more than half (41) of the 79 recommendations in the Maternity Improvement Plan, with the remainder of the work “in progress”.
The latest of 16 new improvements include:
Progress in its bereavement services to ensure that appropriate support and counselling is available for all families;
Improvements in resourcing of the maternity governance and risk team to ensure that workloads are manageable;
Ensuring that the Datix (a system for recording health and safety-related incidents) records are reviewed, graded and actioned in an appropriate and timely manner; and
Ensuring all independent board members have now been trained in the implications of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 to better understand their role in ensuring the safety of services.
There were also recognised advancements made in the leadership and culture within the organisation.
However, the panel added that due to the current “uncertainty” about NHS services due to the Covid-19 outbreak, it had concerns about whether the health board will be able to “maintain the longer-term focus and commitment that is now needed to build upon the solid platform which has been created”.
The panel also confirmed that six review teams, led by experts from outside Wales, are looking at the individual cases of 140 mothers and babies between 2016 and 2018.
It is also understood that there may be more cases – dating back to 2010 – that will need to be reviewed by the panel, with 40 families already coming forward looking for answers.
Health Minister Vaughan Gething said: “Despite early progress being made in many areas, it has clearly been essential for the health board to focus its efforts on preparing and managing the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak in recent weeks.
“However, whilst this may impact on the pace of change, I’m confident that the board is committed to do all that is needed to be a truly quality- driven organisation.
“That is the only outcome that is acceptable to me.”