The government have said that they take families' concerns with maternity services at Nottingham hospitals "very seriously". It follows a letter sent by 100 families to Health Secretary Sajid Javid calling for him to order an independent inquiry.
The families, who all are said to have experienced the 'same failings' at Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH), asked for Donna Ockenden to be appointed for the inquiry. The senior midwife recently released her report into maternity services at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals, which revealed failings had contributed to hundreds of babies' deaths over 20 years.
In the letter, the families call for the help of Ms Ockenden as they say "nothing has changed" despite the findings of past reviews and inquests. Sarah and Jack Hawkins, who run an online support group for the parents, said the existing review of the NHS trust was not enough as they questioned its independence.
Read more: 100 Nottingham families with stories of 'dead babies and traumatic births' call for Ockenden review
After the letter was sent on Wednesday, April 6, a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care told Nottinghamshire Live that it was taking the concerns "very seriously" and was closely monitoring the situation.
“The Ockenden report paints a tragic and harrowing picture of repeated failures in care over two decades at Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Hospital Trust. The Health and Social Care Secretary has been clear we will leave no stone unturned in addressing these failures," said the spokesperson.
“We take the patient safety concerns at Nottingham University Hospital NHS Trust’s maternity services very seriously. The Trust is taking action to improve services but we are closely monitoring progress in improving the standard of care for mothers and babies.”
NUH, which runs Queen's Medical Centre and City Hospital, was served a warning notice by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in March after it again found a number of concerns remained with its maternity department. It follows a previous inspection in 2020 that rated the services 'inadequate'.
NUH previously said that it was "fully co-operating" with the review and that it was doing "everything in our power" to ensure the best possible care. Acting Chief Executive Rupert Egginton said: “Our staff remain committed to improving our maternity services at pace to give confidence to patients, colleagues and partners that we have improved the service and the care we provide.”
