Women face 110-mile trips to give birth

WOMEN are being ‘put off’ having children because they fear the risks of having to drive 110 miles to hospital, a campaign group has warned.

Mothers-to-be in Caithness have faced the ‘uncertainty’ of a two-hour drive to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness since local consultant-led maternity services, based in Wick, were withdrawn in 2016.

Now the number of women in the area giving birth has plummeted to 152 last year, from an average of 200 to 220.

Of those 152 mothers, only nine had their babies in Caithness.

Ron Gunn, vice-chairman of campaign group the Caithness Health Action Team (CHAT), said: ‘I am aware of families who have put off having children because of the uncertainty of going to the local hospital in Wick and then having to go down the A9 in an ambulance.

‘We are also aware of families who have moved away to have their children.’

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon promised to investigate in February last year, after premature twins arrived 52 miles apart while their mother was on her way to Inverness. CHAT has now written to Health Secretary Jeane Freeman calling for a Government review.

NHS Highland head of midwifery Mary Burnside said: ‘Antenatal and postnatal care is provided locally by the midwife-led Community Maternity Unit (CMU), who work closely with the consultant obstetric team in Raigmore Hospital.

‘We have seen a drop in birth numbers. Women who could have given birth in the CMU are choosing to give birth at Raigmore. We’re exploring reasons for this.’