Maternity scandal findings must be acted on 'as soon as possible' say lawyers for families
Lawyers representing families affected by Shropshire's maternity scandal say any recommendations in the latest inquiry report this week must be "acted upon as soon as possible".
Wednesday will see the publication of the final report from Donna Ockenden into maternity services at Shrewsbury & Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH).
It will be the second report published by the maternity expert after she was asked to carry out an independent review of the trust by the former Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt in 2017.
The report will outline experiences of families in 1,862 cases which have been involved in the review – and is likely to include recommendations for improvements in maternity services at SaTH, as well as across the wider NHS.
The first report published in December 2020 found 34 areas where maternity care should be improved.
It also outlined horrific and upsetting details of cases involving 250 families.
Speaking over the weekend, and ahead of the report's publication, Mrs Ockenden said the details of the experiences of families had been harrowing.
She said: “We have seen families that have been split apart, families where relationships have been broken, cases of trauma and PTSD that have persisted for years after the event as well as terrible, terrible sadness. At times, after meeting families, I went back to my hotel room and I cried.”
The publication of the report has been delayed twice and medical negligence lawyers at Irwin Mitchell, which represents a number of families involved in the review, said the focus was on making sure the report is completed and implemented in full.
The firm said the families it represents consider it vital that decisive action is taken once the full findings are laid bare – and that there is accountability for any recommendations being implemented as soon as possible.
Tim Annett, an expert medical negligence lawyer at the firm said: “Sadly we continue to hear incredibly worrying first-hand accounts from families with concerns about their maternity care, not just at Shrewsbury and Telford, but other trusts.
“A lot of detail as to how families were badly let down while under the care of Shrewsbury and Telford has already been released at various stages of the review. No doubt many people will have further questions and concerns once more detail is known.
“While this is an emotional time for the families we represent they’re adamant decisive and lasting action should be taken to address any issues and recommendations contained in the report.
“Sadly other maternity scandals such as Morecambe Bay and East Kent Hospitals would indicate that what happened at Shrewsbury and Telford wasn’t an isolated problem.
“Too often in the past we’ve seen reviews and investigations into hospital care make recommendations which have taken years to implement.
“This report must not be pushed to one side after publication – it’s crucial that the detail is analysed and where possible lessons are learned to improve maternity safety which must remain a focus for the NHS.”
The inquiry was launched after Rhiannon Davies and her partner Richard Stanton, and Kayleigh and Colin Griffiths, wrote to the then-health secretary Jeremy Hunt about their concerns over the trust in 2017.
Both families had suffered tragedy with the deaths of Ms Davies and Mr Stanton's daughter, Kate, and Mr and Mrs Griffiths' daughter, Pippa, judged to have been avoidable.
The scope of the investigation has expanded significantly throughout the review.
The initial inquiry was looking at around 60 cases, but that has risen to nearly 1,862.
While the inquiry has been ongoing West Mercia Police has also launched a criminal investigation into maternity care at the trust, called Operation Lincoln.
