Kettering maternity unit downgraded as evidence of 'babies at risk'

Inspectors who have downgraded a maternity unit have said low staffing levels "put the safety of birthing people and babies at risk".

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has graded the department at Kettering General Hospital as "requires improvement".

It was rated as "good" after the last inspection in 2019.

The hospital said a lot of work had taken place to address the issues highlighted by the inspectors.

The CQC report follows an inspection on 11 October 2023, of which the hospital had two days' notice.

The inspectors found that "staffing levels for midwives did not always match the planned numbers, putting the safety of women and birthing people and babies at risk.

"There were insufficient suitably qualified and competent medical staff for maternity triage and elective caesarean section lists."

The inspectors were also concerned about hygiene, and their report noted that "the service did not always manage cleanliness and control infection risk well or keep all equipment and the premises visibly clean".

They saw one midwife wearing nail varnish on duty, which was against the hospital's uniform policy and hand hygiene requirements.

A small number of staff told inspectors about discrimination towards people from ethnic minority groups in the department.

According to the report, one said: "I find myself dreading coming into work, and it impacts on patient care."

The inspectors were more impressed by the mandatory training for staff and the way the service "focused on the needs of women and birthing people receiving care".

There was also praise for the unit's investigation of incidents and the handling of concerns raised by staff and patients.

The hospital's chief nursing officer, Jayne Skippen, said: "We take the recommendations of the CQC report very seriously and a lot of work has been taking place since the inspection to address some of the issues raised.

"These include improving our triage process; developing robust recruitment and retention plans to address staffing challenges; and employing a patient experience midwife.

"I'd like to reassure the public that we consistently achieve and maintain our cleaning standards and score highly on our monthly inspection audits. We are also developing long-term plans to improve facilities for maternity services."

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