Women in labour denied pain relief, inquiry finds after Telegraph report
WOMEN in labour are being denied epidurals by NHS hospitals, an inquiry launched in the wake of a Telegraph exposé has confirmed.
An investigation in January by The Sunday Telegraph found hospitals were refusing clear requests from mothersto-be in breach of official guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice), which state that women must be able to access pain relief when they ask for it, including epidurals. The “cult of natural childbirth” was blamed for the refusal of epidurals at six NHS trusts with mothers reporting being told by doctors: “It’s not called labour for nothing, it’s meant to be hard work.”
Matt Hancock, the Health Secretary, responded by committing to an investigation to determine whether hospitals were breaching official guidelines.
“Clinical guidance clearly state that you can ask for pain relief at any time – before and during labour – and as long as it is safe to do so, this should never be refused. I’m concerned by evidence that such requests are being denied for anything other than a clinical reason,” he said. “It’s vital this guidance is being followed right across our NHS. Women being denied pain relief is wrong and we will be investigating.”
A Department of Health and Social Care investigation has now found that in addition to women being denied the pain-relieving spinal injections, they are also not being fully informed that if they opt to give birth at home or in a midwife-led unit, they may require a transfer upon requesting an epidural. Nadine Dorries, a health minister, will now write to heads and directors of midwifery and medical directors at NHS trusts to instruct them to follow Nice guidelines regarding the administration of pain relief in labour, according to The Guardian.
The Government inquiry’s findings were “sadly not surprising”, Clare Murphy, director of external affairs at the British Pregnancy Advisory Service said. “Pain relief is sometimes treated as a ‘nice extra’ rather than an integral part of maternity care, and women and their families can suffer profoundly as a result. Staffing shortages may be an issue but we also know women may experience gatekeeping by healthcare professionals and be told labour ‘is meant to be hard work’.”
Official figures show the number of women given pain relief has fallen.
The statistics from NHS Digital show the percentage of women in labour given pain medication such as epidurals has fallen from 67 per cent in 200809 to 61 per cent in 2018-19.