Question
Untitled item
S6W-23795 · Written Question · lodged by Baillie, Jackie
Lodged on
11 Dec 2023Heard / answered on
29 Dec 2023To ask the Scottish Government how long it anticipates the journey from University Hospital Wishaw to Aberdeen Maternity Hospital will take for ambulances moving premature babies.
The answer
Under the new model of care, mothers in suspected extreme pre-term labour will be transferred to give birth in hospitals that have neonatal intensive care units. Those maternity units will have expanded capacity to receive those women.
It is recognised that it will not always be possible to transfer mothers before they give birth. In those cases, as has been established practice for many years, our specialist neonatal transfer service (ScotSTAR) will transfer those babies by air or by road in specialist ambulances equipped to care for neonates, accompanied by neonatal staff.
The Scottish Perinatal network has developed and published guidance for all Boards across Scotland to support identification and transfer of mothers in suspected extreme preterm labour. Experiences of testing the new model of neonatal intensive care showed that the vast majority of mothers in suspected pre-term labour were identified and transferred before giving birth.
Women from NHS Lanarkshire would normally be transferred to the Queen Elizabeth University hospital in Glasgow. Should that unit be at capacity, it may it be necessary to transfer those women to Edinburgh, or to Aberdeen, and parents will be involved in those discussions.
Journey times from Wishaw to Aberdeen will vary depending on the time of day and urgency of the transfer.
It is recognised that it will not always be possible to transfer mothers before they give birth. In those cases, as has been established practice for many years, our specialist neonatal transfer service (ScotSTAR) will transfer those babies by air or by road in specialist ambulances equipped to care for neonates, accompanied by neonatal staff.
The Scottish Perinatal network has developed and published guidance for all Boards across Scotland to support identification and transfer of mothers in suspected extreme preterm labour. Experiences of testing the new model of neonatal intensive care showed that the vast majority of mothers in suspected pre-term labour were identified and transferred before giving birth.
Women from NHS Lanarkshire would normally be transferred to the Queen Elizabeth University hospital in Glasgow. Should that unit be at capacity, it may it be necessary to transfer those women to Edinburgh, or to Aberdeen, and parents will be involved in those discussions.
Journey times from Wishaw to Aberdeen will vary depending on the time of day and urgency of the transfer.
Answered by Jenni Minto on 29 Dec 2023.