A concerned councillor is demanding a reinstatement of maternity services in the west of the region to prevent mothers giving birth en route to hospital.
Jackie McCamon raised her concerns over the safety of women and unborn babies at Tuesday’s full council meeting.
The move was prompted by several cases where women from Wigtownshire have given birth in cars and ambulances before making it to the maternity unit at Dumfries Infirmary.
Mid Galloway and Wigtown West Councillor McCamon said: “Mums tell me they can’t face the anxiety of going through another pregnancy with the thought of such an uncertain drive to hospital.
“First time mums are unsure of symptoms, wait too long and have no choice but to give birth at home or by the roadside because the hospital is just too far.”
She said she had no criticism of the staff at Galloway Community Hospital in Stranraer who “go above and beyond to provide a service”.
But she added: “Could you imagine having to travel from Dumfries to Glasgow to give birth because it is the same distance?”
Councillor McCamon tabled a motion calling for all options to be explored to have babies delivered at Galloway Community Hospital in Stranraer again, including consultant-led services.
It read: “Galloway Community Hospital Action Group (GCHAG) has campaigned for the Galloway Community Hospital to be used to its maximum potential.
“During their campaign, the GCHAG has discovered that since 2018 there has only been one planned birth at Galloway Community Hospital’s maternity unit. All other births over this period have been in Dumfries.”
The meeting also heard from Julie White, chief operating officer of NHS Dumfries and Galloway and chief officer of the region’s health and social care partnership.
She said it was decided in 2018 not to use the maternity unit “in response to a significant staffing crisis” which had continued despite efforts to recruit midwives.
As a result, the “least risky option is to ask women to access the maternity unit in Dumfries”.
Members backed Councillor McCamon’s motion that the integrated joint board receives a report on maternity services in Wigtownshire that also looks at the options for the future and transport issues. The Tory councillor is also due to raise the issue with Scotland’s Public Health Minister Maree Todd.
