Dedicated emergency phone lines have been installed at hospital obstetric units across Greater Manchester so 999 call handlers can warn doctors and midwives of critically-ill women on their way in. The potentially life-saving new system works in a similar way to how A&E departments operate in an emergency case.
Emergency phone lines there are used to pre-alert the hospital that a patient is on the way in. North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) announced today the need for a similar process to ensure maternity staff are prepared for the arrival of an ambulance to a maternity unit with a pregnancy-related emergency had been identified.
As a result, a dedicated emergency phone line has been installed in every obstetric unit across the North West.
In a statement, NWAS said: "As part of the protocol, the NWAS emergency call handler will ring the dedicated number, which will be answered by a midwife or doctor, and provide the details and estimated time of arrival. This allows the hospital to prepare to receive the patient who may need emergency treatment."
Hospital bosses have welcomed the move, saying in an emergency, every second counts for a woman and her unborn child. Delays, they added, put lives at risk.
NWAS Consultant Midwife, Stephanie Heys, said: "Any delay in accessing specialised maternity care could be a safety risk for mothers and babies who require emergency care. Pre-alerts are an example of good communication between the ambulance service and receiving maternity units, and help ensure everyone is prepared for the arrival of a patient who might be in need of emergency care.
"Working closely with regional maternity and obstetric teams to introduce this protocol will further improve the care our emergency maternity and obstetric patients receive as they transition from ambulance to the maternity unit."
Early notifications enable teams to 'prioritise clinical needs' and allow the correct staff to assembled in advance, hospital chiefs added.
Catherine Owens, Director of Midwifery/Associate Chief Nurse at Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: "Having the designated emergency NWAS phone and protocol on our birthing suite has improved communication between NWAS, maternity, obstetric and neonatal teams and enables early notification of women requiring emergency care on the birth suite.
"Early notification of a woman enables the team to prioritise her clinical needs and ensures the right team members have been called to birth suites and are ready to provide the emergency care required. In an emergency, every minute counts and having the designated NWAS emergency phone and protocol is a collaborative quality improvement measure to maximise a woman's experience and improve outcomes and clinical effectiveness."
