The taskforce will explore inequalities in maternity care and identify how the government can improve outcomes for women from ethnic minority communities
A new Maternity Disparities Taskforce will tackle disparities in maternity care experienced by women from ethnic minority groups and those living in deprived areas.
The taskforce will be established by Minister for Patient Safety and Primary Care Maria Caulfield and co-chaired by Chief Midwifery Officer, Professor Jacqueline Dunkley-Bent OBE to make real progress in understanding the reasons for poor outcomes in maternity care.
The government has taken action to halve the rate of stillbirths, neonatal deaths, maternal deaths and brain injuries by 2025. The latest figures show the stillbirth rate has reduced by over 25% since 2010 and the neonatal mortality rate has reduced by 29%, surpassing the ambition for a 20% reduction by 2020.
However, while progress has been made, disparities continue to persist – the reasons for which remain unclear.
Data shows there is an almost two-fold difference in mortality rates between women from Asian ethnic groups and white women, and they are also higher for black women. Studies have also found black women are 40% more likely to experience a miscarriage than white women.
Birmingham is one of the most deprived areas of the country and has the highest rates of neonatal mortality and stillbirths at 11.4 per 1,000. Birmingham also has a high number of low birth weight of all babies (9.7% in 2018) and a high prematurity rate.
Minister for Women’s Health, Maria Caulfield, said:
The taskforce seek to increase understanding of the drivers behind the disparities, examine the social factors linked to poorer health outcomes and tackle these issues in order to improve the health and wellbeing of women and their babies.
It will seek to do so by looking to consider and support evidence-based interventions for the following areas:
The first meeting will be held on 8 March, with meetings held every two months to maintain and track progress, bringing together experts from across the health service, mothers, government and the voluntary sector, with membership to be published this month.
It will build on existing work by government and the NHS to improve care, for example the government has invested £5 million in the Brain Injury Reduction Programme to reduce the rate of brain injuries in babies occurring during or soon after births.
The NHS has produced Equity & Equality Guidance to help local maternity systems address these disparities and the taskforce will work to improve cross-government working to address the social determinants of health for women and babies from ethnic minority groups and those living in the most deprived areas.
Professor Jacqueline Dunkley-Bent, Chief Midwifery Officer for England, said:
Dr Edward Morris, President of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said:
Commenting, the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) Director for Professional Midwifery, Mary Ross- Davie said;
To support maternity staff and families further, the NHS is increasing the maternity workforce further with a £95 million recruitment drive to hire 1,200 more midwives and 100 obstetricians.