Trust Mother's Words, Acknowledge Our Feelings: Exploring underrepresented experiences of maternity care
Using insight Healthwatch Lambeth sought to identify areas for improvement to enable local services to make services accessible, inclusive and high quality, partnering with local community organisations in Lambeth including Mummy's Day Out, The Motherhood Group, IRMO, Homestart Lambeth and DASL.
HW Lambeth's findings showed that women had both positive and negative experiences of care. Whilst some women spoke highly of health professionals who showed kindness and were responsive to individual needs and circumstances, for several women a lack of person-centred care, a focus on structural aspects of care combined with limited relationship building with care professionals left many women feeling anxious and often processed through the system. Other issues highlighted in the research included women not being trusted and feeling ignored by healthcare professionals during pregnancy, during labour and birth and after birth on the postnatal ward left many women feeling alone, uncared for and disrespected.
The provision of information, good communication, positive staff attitudes and continuity of care was key to positive experiences of care. However, for many women this was often lacking resulting in a loss of autonomy and control. Women frequently described a lack of physical and practical support on the postnatal ward which left them feeling helpless and abandoned. Inconsistent postnatal care after discharge also left some women perceiving care to be focused on the wellbeing of the baby and not addressing their emotional or physical needs. There were particular issues raised by individual groups/communities of women which also contributed to their perceptions of maternity care. These are detailed in the full report available below.
Recommendations resulting from the report included the need for provision of personalised care conversations and training with strong emphasis on active listening, and efforts to treat women with respect and dignity. Provision of clear and accessible information to enable women to feel involved and make choices about their care at all stages of the perinatal journey alongside addressing staff shortages were also highlighted. Additionally. the need for training to challenge negative staff attitudes, including equality diversity and inclusion, the role of unconscious bias and what constitutes non-stigmatising care whilst prioritising the specific wellbeing needs of mother's postnatally was also seen as vital.
Jacqui Kempen, Head of Maternity Services for South East London responded to the report;
"This is part of a significant piece of work involving voluntary sector organisations and will provide a bank of feedback specific to SEL and will support our work to increase equity moving forward. The LMNS has a large programme of work with the golden thread to improve experience and outcomes especially for those who are underrepresented or marginalised. The results of this work will feed into the LMNS equality and equity action plan…. The LMNS are working on improving access and information for all women and birthing people once pregnant, with a focus on those that may not be able to access information and support within current structures."
Chief Executive of Healthwatch Lambeth, Mairéad Healy also commented;
"Whilst we are not surprised by some of the findings in our report, which sadly correlates with the national picture in relation to experiences of the underrepresented communities we engaged with, we are encouraged by the commitment of SEL MNS to address the issues raised in our report."
Research and Engagement manager Vanita Bhavnani added;
"This has been a powerful project for Healthwatch Lambeth to be involved in, working in collaboration with several local community organisations and maternity services to improve care for all women in the borough. We are grateful for all who contributed."
