Midwives ‘crisis’ as mothers over 40 double

THE number of women over 40 giving birth has doubled in 15 years, a report disclosed, as midwives warned of a staffing crisis.

Experts said hospital units were under “intense pressure” with too few midwives to manage the rise in older mothers, who run a greater risk of complications.

Births to women in their 40s have been above 29,000 for four years in a row – five times the level of the 1970s.

The Royal College of Midwives ( RCM) says a shortage of more than 2,600 midwives is likely to increase rapidly as an ageing workforce means thousands are due to retire. Its annual State of Maternity Services report says the total number of women over 40 giving birth rose from 14,252 in 1999 to 29,010 last year. In one year, almost 7,000 more babies were born to women in their 30s and 40s. The report adds: “Women who give birth later in life will on average need more care. The added complexity and cost means that more needs to be invested in maternity care to ensure they get it.”

Cathy Warwick, RCM chief executive, said she feared trends meant that widespread staff shortages were about to become much worse: “All women deserve the very best care, regardless of the age at which they give birth. Women have every right to give birth later in life, and we support that.

“Typically, older women will require more care during pregnancy. That means more midwives are needed.”

The report says 661,496 babies were born in England last year, almost 100,000 more than in 2001.

The authors say too few new midwifery staff are being trained as others prepare to retire: midwives in England aged 50 or over doubled from 4,057 in 2001 to 8,169 last year.

Ms Warwick said: “It is deeply frustrating for midwives that they cannot provide the quality of maternity care that they want to deliver because they are so shortstaffed. What worries me in particular is the retirement timebomb that our report unearths. Across the UK, we are not seeing enough new midwives being taken on.

“Many older midwives will, of course, be very experienced, and they are able to mentor and support newer, younger midwives. But they won’t be around in the maternity units forever.”