Abortions halted at clinic hit by safety concerns
Marie Stopes delays terminations for under-18s
A Maidstone clinic has suspended some of its abortion services amid safety concerns.
Marie Stopes in Brewer Street has temporarily stopped providing terminations under general anaesthetic and to under-18s and vulnerable women, following Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspections of the provider’s UK clinics.
It comes after the CQC found issues surrounding governance arrangements and patient safety protocols.
Precise details of the failings have not yet been made public by the regulator.
A statement issued by the clinic said: “Marie Stopes UK has agreed with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to voluntarily suspend some of its termination of pregnancy services.
“This is to allow Marie Stopes UK to resolve areas of concern in its training and governance procedures.
“We are working urgently with the CQC on these areas and intend to regain full assurance within a few days.
“We’d like to reassure people that our other services remain unaffected.
“Each year 70,000 women are treated within our centres, and our clinical outcomes continue to outperform the national average.”
Marie Stopes will be working with NHS England to make sure women affected by the action are rebooked into alternative clinics.
It will affect around 250 women per week in the UK.
Prof Edward Baker, deputy chief inspector of hospitals at the Care Quality Commission, said: “At all times, our priority is to ensure that patients get safe, high-quality and compassionate care.
“We believe that the action taken is appropriate to address our concerns.
“We will report fully and publicly on our inspection findings as soon as our regulatory process has concluded and we are able to do so.” The services will not resume until the CQC is satisfied with improvements at the clinic. Any patients with questions about their treatment should call the dedicated helpline on 0345 300 8090.