Issue - meetings

To receive an update from East Cheshire NHS Trust on the return of intrapartum care to Macclesfield District General Hospital.

Kate Daly-Brown, Director of Nursing and Quality attended Committee to provide an update on plans to safely return full intrapartum care to Macclesfield District General Hospital (DGH).

The Committee was informed that intrapartum services at Macclesfield DGH were suspended in March 2020 in preparation for the surge in critical care linked to the COVID-19 pandemic. The service was suspended initially for a six-month period as a result of limited anaesthetic capacity within the Trust, however this suspension was subsequently extended a further three times following assessments against the approved recovery criteria. It was confirmed that whilst intrapartum services at the hospital had been suspended, the Trust had continued to deliver home births and provided antenatal and postnatal care.

The Committee was pleased to learn that the Trust had achieved its targets to allow the safe reinstatement of intrapartum services to Macclesfield DGH and that services officially returned on Monday 26 June 2023 and eight babies had been successfully delivered at the hospital to date.

The Committee noted that the Trust had committed to completing a post implementation review following a three-month period of service delivery. Committee Members requested that the findings of this review be presented to the Scrutiny Committee at the appropriate time as Members were keen to ensure that services at Macclesfield DGH remained sustainable. 

RESOLVED:

1. That the report on intrapartum services at Macclesfield DGH be received and noted.