Sands have been working hard to secure agreement with 11 hospital trusts across England over the past month to arrange piloting of the National Bereavement Care Pathway later this year. Working with the Department of Health, the pathway is being developed to ensure parents receive the best possible care after the loss of their baby.
News Archive
The Daily Telegraph says that women with postnatal depression are being left without help because they are scared of being thought unfit mothers. The study by the National Childbirth Trust suggests half of new mothers suffer mental health problems during pregnancy or within the first year of their child’s birth.
The Times reports that stillbirth rates have started to fall for the first time in a decade. In 2015, about 250 babies survived who would have died two years earlier, figures that recorded an eight per cent fall in the stillbirth rate suggests. Stillbirth rates fell from 4.2 per 1,000 births in 2013 to 3.87 in 2015.
Age Connects ‘Voyager’ project provides talking therapy for older people who have recently moved into a care home in Denbighshire, Wales. The initiative helps to prevent any potential deterioration in the mental health of older people when transitioning into care. The service is free and confidential.
Macmillan has developed an information booklet in partnership with the charity Mummy’s Star, for women diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy. It explains some of the emotional and practical issues experienced by women in this situation, as well as the treatment options and support available to them during this difficult and complex time.
A CQC review found that some providers were not giving learning from deaths, sufficient priority, and were missing valuable opportunities to identify and make improvements in quality of care. Learning from deaths of people in their care can help providers improve the quality of the care they provide to patients and their families, and identify where they could do more. The National Quality Board (NQB) introduced new guidance for NHS providers on how they should learn from the deaths of people in their care.
Challenges facing Betsi Cadwaladr health board in north Wales “are still evident”, a report from the auditor general and healthcare inspectorate has said. But chief executive Gary Doherty said the organisation had “made pretty good progress”.
Safer Pregnancy Wales is a yearlong campaign developed by the Wales Maternity Network in collaboration with 1000 Lives Improvement. The campaign highlights the importance of keeping safe during pregnancy to reduce the risk of stillbirth and aims to help expectant mothers and healthcare professionals talk about what can be done to keep safe and reduce the risk of stillbirth.
The number of complaints made against one health board and how these were dealt with is concerning, the public services ombudsman has said. An improvement officer has been assigned to work alongside the health board and it is hoped that better complaint handling and learning is seen as a result.
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board is pledging to tackle the stigma and discrimination surrounding mental health by lending its support to a national campaign to change attitudes in Wales. The Health Board is the latest employer to sign the ‘Time to Change Wales’ charter and pledge to improve awareness, reduce stigma and support staff who are experiencing mental health problems.
A Perinatal pathway for babies with palliative care needs has been developed by Together for Short Lives with expert input from ethicists and clinicians working across obstetrics, antenatal and neonatal care, and children’s palliative care.
It is designed to support health professionals to deliver sensitive and timely support, enabling families to spend time with their baby in a more home-like environment, and with as little technologically dependent care as possible.
Sands have published a summary of the outcomes from the National Bereavement Care Pathway workshops. Working with the Department of Health, the pathway is being developed to ensure parents receive the best possible care after the loss of their baby.