Parents and parents-to-be and their families who have used maternity and neonatal services at Bradford Royal Infirmary or Airedale Hospital are being encouraged to share their experiences by a group led by independent service users.
Both Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Airedale NHS Foundation Trust are served by a Maternity and Neonatal Voices Partnership (MNVP), and the MNVP Leads for each Trust are welcoming people to come forward and share their experience of maternity care. They are also reminding people to continue to access local services – through the maternity assessment centre at the Trust they are booked in or through a community midwife, GP or health visitor – should they have any clinical questions or concerns relating to any stage of their pregnancy.
MNVPs are a partnership of independent service users working with maternity staff and community groups to listen to the experiences of women and families using maternity and neonatal services and ensure that services meet their needs. The two independent local MNVP Leads work across Bradford District and Craven and beyond, to collect feedback from anyone who has received care from the Trusts.
The Bradford MNVP is led by Nas Ali, who had her son at Bradford Royal Infirmary in 2022, and the Airedale MNVP is led by Sarah Hutchinson. Sarah had her eldest son at Airedale Hospital in 2018 and received antenatal and postnatal care there with her youngest child in 2021. She has also received support from Airedale for a miscarriage.
To ensure that the local MNVPs are independent and community-centred they are supported by locally based voluntary, community and social enterprise organisations the VCS Alliance and Cnet and are not employed directly by the NHS.
Sarah Hutchinson, Lead of Airedale MNVP, said:
Myself and Nas work together to gather feedback from families across the area, analysing and presenting this to the Trusts. We set the partnership’s priorities, working closely with maternity staff and we attend the maternity governance boards to ensure that service-user voice is central to decision-making. We have an online feedback form people can use to provide anonymous feedback – and to sign up to our newsletter (www.engagebdc.com/mvp).
We also go out to maternity circles and baby groups across the area to engage and talk to women to give them the opportunity to share their stories – anyone running a group working with families with young children can get in touch as we would love to come and meet them.
We know that difficult birth experiences, and especially experiences of loss, can be deeply distressing – but we know from experience that there is a range of support on offer. Our website (www.engagebdc.com/mvp) signposts to services that people can self-refer to – you should also ask your GP, Community Midwife or health visitor for advice.
We are very aware people will have seen the news that Bradford maternity and neonatal services are one of the 14 Trusts that are part of a national investigation led by Baroness Amos. We want to reassure people that we are working to ensure that everyone’s experiences are heard and acted on. Many people tell us they’ve received excellent care and support at both BRI and Airedale – and we are working hard with the Trusts to address the concerns of those who are less happy.
Nas Ali, Lead of Bradford MNVP, added:
The more experiences – good, bad, and mixed – we hear, the stronger the patient voice will be. We will be sharing the stories families tell us with us with the investigation team and we are waiting to hear how we will be invited to engage. We are committed to ensuring that women, birthing people and families are heard loud and clear – from labour ward to the Department of Health and Social Care. That is why we need people to share their experiences so we can learn – from the good as well as the bad.
MNVPs do not get involved in complaints and we are reminding people that they should contact their local hospital through the patient experience or PALS service at each Trust. In addition, MNVP Leads cannot provide clinical advice, this must be sought through the health and care professionals that support families throughout the pregnancy journey and beyond.
Sarah and Nas are urging women to continue accessing maternity care. Women with clinical concerns should contact their Midwife or the Maternity Assessment Centre at the Trust they have been booked to for advice.
Anyone wanting to get involved in the work of the MNVPs for Bradford District and Craven, including signing up to the mailing list, can do so by visiting www.engagebdc.com/mvp