The Sunday Times reported that a five-year investigation would conclude next week that mothers refused a caesarean section and were forced to undergo traumatic births because of their alleged involvement in achieving “normal” childbirth goals. The study, which analyzed the experiences of 1,500 families at Shrewsbury Hospital and Telford Hospital between 2000 and 2019, found that at least 12 mothers died in childbirth and some families lost more than one child in various incidents, the newspaper reported. Donna Ockenden, a midwife who led the research with the help of more than 90 midwives and doctors, said her team was “shocked and saddened” by the magnitude of the tragedy. Donna Ockenden, the former senior midwife who led an independent investigation into infant deaths at the trusted institution. The Ockenden report is expected to reveal that hundreds of babies were stillborn, died shortly after birth or suffered permanent brain damage, while many had skull fractures or broken bones or were left with life-changing disabilities. Ockenden, who has more than 30 years of experience in maternity services, told the Sunday Times: “There have been many opportunities for the system to wake up and realize that there was a problem with that trust. “There have been several cases where families have tried to be heard for many years and have been silenced or ignored. “We have seen divorced families, families where relationships have broken down, cases of trauma and PTSD that persist for years after the incident, as well as terrible, terrible sadness. “From time to time, after meeting families, I would go back to my hotel room and cry.” An NHS spokeswoman said: “Our health service is constantly striving to provide safe and compassionate maternity services as they give birth to 1,600 babies every day and we have already taken significant steps to transform our care for pregnant women and their babies – with an additional 127 £ millions to strengthen the maternity workforce and improve the workplace culture for our staff announced earlier this week. “This is in addition to the extra 95 95 million last year for the creation of 1,300 new maternity roles on the NHS alongside new leadership training and development programs, and we have seen clear progress in improving outcomes and experiences for women and their families.” “But we recognize that there is still progress to be made and the NHS will take further steps to ensure that all women and babies are given the best possible care.” Angela McConville, managing director of the parenting and childbirth charity NCT, said the organization had revised its antenatal classes in 2019 with a framework covering “all forms of childbirth”. He added: “The position of our charity today is to support parents to have the best possible experience of pregnancy, childbirth and early parenting. “We are not here to give advice or to promote one way over the other. “We believe that safety for women and babies must be paramount.”
