'Transparency required' from maternity review

A deputy has called for more transparency about how recommendations were implemented from a maternity review 11-years ago.

Following a neonatal death in 2014, serious concerns were flagged and multiple reviews were made into Guernsey's maternity services at the Princess Elizabeth Hospital. A final 2015 report was made with 12 recommendations to improve.

Deputy Gavin St Pier asked the Committee for Health & Social Care (HSC) what recommendations were taken on, which included improving clinical leadership, training, incident management and patient safety systems.

Committee president deputy Dr George Oswald said an action plan was developed and all 12 recommendations addressed by 2017.

Oswald said as the report was more than decade old and related to "a sensitive case involving confidential clinical matters", it could not provide a "recommendation-by-recommendation account of actions taken in response to the report".

He said the committee acknowledged that following the "deeply regrettable case", a range of reviews from the action plan highlighted areas for improvement.

Oswald said these found "important lessons that informed the programme of service development and quality improvement that followed".

"Since that time, maternity services have undergone significant further development and have continued to evolve in line with UK standards, national guidance and subsequent reviews," he added.

St Pier said he was "disappointed this response" and that there was "nothing confidential" in the original report.

He said: "While there will always be an understandable desire to reassure the public, the response was very high level, generic and sought to provide unrealistic assurance that everything is perfect.

"Although the report is 11-years-old, maternity care understandably remains of significant public interest, not least because of the high profile scandals which persist elsewhere, in light of which it is appropriate that our own maternity care should be subject to ongoing scrutiny."

St Pier said there was "a change in culture" required in the public service, including health and social care.

He said accountability and transparency required "a willingness to be honest and open about weaknesses and challenges as well as celebrating success and achievement".

"Sadly, too often scrutiny is seen as confrontational rather than legitimate challenge - I hope the committee will reconsider the question and provide a more useful response," he added.

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