Northern Lincolnshire and Goole FT reviewing stillbirth rates

The action, highlighted in minutes of the NHS North of England board, follows concerns raised in the annual report of the Yorkshire and Humber Local Supervising Authority for 2010-11. The LSA monitors maternity care and midwifery.

In relation to concerns about “high rates of still births in Scunthorpe and Goole”, the minutes say: “The Chief Nurse [Jane Cummings] reported that Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust was quality assuring their stillbirth data.

“If rates remained high the LSA would carry out an external review of cases to identify any avoidable factors and ensure that any practice issues were addressed. A number of generic LSA actions were also in progress, including conferences on the causes of poor perinatal outcomes and working groups to reach key midwives to reinforce best practice and identify solutions to some of the challenges.”

There will also be a “wider review undertaken in Yorkshire and the Humber, which would look at stillbirths in particular”.