Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament 21 February 2017
21 Feb 2017 · S5 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
National Review of Maternity and Neonatal Services
I declare an interest: one of my daughters is a midwife. About 500 midwives are in training, and their training will be spread over the next three years. The Royal College of Midwives reports that 41 per cent of our current midwives—about 1,200 of them—are over 50 and are eligible to retire at 55. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde reports that it is losing midwives at double the rate at which it used to lose them.
Given the inevitable and chronic loss of experience, which cannot be replaced by newly qualified staff, how does the Scottish Government propose to correct the lack of foresight of the then health secretary, Nicola Sturgeon, who cut maternity training places in 2011, and ensure not only that staffing numbers are raised to an appropriate level but that crucial experience in maternity services is not lost, so that the strategy can be delivered?
In the same item of business
The Presiding Officer (Ken Macintosh)
NPA
The next item of business is a statement by Aileen Campbell on the national review of maternity and neonatal services. The minister will take questions at th...
The Minister for Public Health and Sport (Aileen Campbell)
SNP
I am pleased to update Parliament on our response to the publication of the report of our review of maternity and neonatal services. Every day, our maternit...
The Presiding Officer
NPA
Thank you, minister. I urge members who wish to ask questions and have not pressed their request-to-speak buttons to do so.
Donald Cameron (Highlands and Islands) (Con)
Con
I thank the minister for early sight of her statement. Conservative members welcome the report and the general principles and recommendations that it contain...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
I thank Donald Cameron for his series of questions, and for what he said about being eager and keen to work consensually to deliver on the report’s recommend...
Anas Sarwar (Glasgow) (Lab)
Lab
I thank the minister for prior sight of the statement. It is important to look at the report alongside “Bliss Scotland baby report 2017”, because it is clear...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
Anas Sarwar fails to recognise that we in Scotland have a good record on delivering maternity services. Although there are challenges, as outlined in the rep...
Fulton MacGregor (Coatbridge and Chryston) (SNP)
SNP
I remind members that I am the parliamentary liaison officer to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport. Can the minister outline what the expected patien...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
The recommendation aims to ensure that there is continuity of care for women during their maternity journey. People want to develop relationships, they want ...
Miles Briggs (Lothian) (Con)
Con
I welcome the fact that the review calls on all NHS boards to review their current access to perinatal mental health services to ensure that early and equita...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
I acknowledge Miles Briggs’s real and long-lasting interest in that issue and more generally in mental health. I know that he hosted a conference yesterday. ...
Clare Haughey (Rutherglen) (SNP)
SNP
I refer members to my register of interests. I am a registered mental health nurse and am currently registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council. It is...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
Yes—absolutely. That reflects that a shift in the traditional norms of delivering maternity services throughout the country will be required. There has been ...
Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab)
Lab
At this time last year, before the Scottish Parliament election, the Scottish National Party accused me of scaremongering when I spoke about the closure of t...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
The member mentioned the Vale of Leven hospital. As yet, there are no firm proposals from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde on the future of the units at the Val...
Richard Lochhead (Moray) (SNP)
SNP
Many aspirations in the report deserve support, especially the emphasis on local care. On delivering local care, will the minister commit to supporting our m...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
Richard Lochhead is correct to point out the importance of workforce planning. That is why we will enshrine safe staffing in law by putting our workforce pla...
Alison Johnstone (Lothian) (Green)
Green
I thank the minister for advance sight of her statement. The statement says that the outcomes for “the very sickest babies will be better if they are cared ...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
ScotSTAR will absolutely be involved in the process of recognising the greater requirements that we have made of transportation services as we work through t...
Alex Cole-Hamilton (Edinburgh Western) (LD)
LD
I thank the minister for advance sight of her statement. Given that one in five new mothers experiences mental health difficulties as a result of pregnancy a...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
The importance of good maternal mental health is a main feature of the report as published. Again, that recognition was a motivator in the Minister for Menta...
Stuart McMillan (Greenock and Inverclyde) (SNP)
SNP
The RCM Scotland Director, Mary Ross-Davie, said earlier this month that, in terms of midwife numbers, in Scotland, we are doing well. We have known for a lo...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
As I said, we have a commitment to ensure that we have the right complement of staff, and our innovative midwifery workload and workforce planning tools, whi...
Brian Whittle (South Scotland) (Con)
Con
I declare an interest: one of my daughters is a midwife. About 500 midwives are in training, and their training will be spread over the next three years. The...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
In a number of responses to members who asked about midwife numbers, I said that Scotland’s ratio continues to be better than that of many other areas of the...
The Presiding Officer
NPA
I can take two more brief questions, if the minister is also brief.
Neil Bibby (West Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
Do ministers plan to reduce intensive care provision at neonatal units across Scotland? Today, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde agreed to submit its plan to clo...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
The recommendations include a move to up to five neonatal intensive care units, which will provide specialist care for the sickest babies, in the knowledge t...
Kenneth Gibson (Cunninghame North) (SNP)
SNP
I welcome the statement and the minister’s commitment to accept all 76 recommendations that are in the report. Work to continue to reduce stillbirths and neo...
Aileen Campbell
SNP
I thank Kenneth Gibson for raising the question. I cannot imagine the pain and suffering that any parent goes through when they have lost a child; he is righ...