Following the Ockenden review
The review revealed a ‘persistent failure to listen to and believe mothers and fathers and a corresponding failure to investigate, and therefore learn from mistakes.’
The Government has already accepted one of its key recommendations, which is to roll out Martha’s rule to all maternity services in England. This ensures every parent can request a rapid review from an independent medical team if a mother or baby’s condition is deteriorating and they are concerned this is not being responded to.
Although this review highlights that parents were not always listened to, we want to urge people to continue to speak up, share feedback and complain if they are unhappy about their care from any NHS health or social care service. It is always a good idea to tell those providing care if you have any concerns. Our Feedback and complaints page provides details of where you can feedback for different services and also gives details of support available to help guide you through the complaints procedure. Our Helpdesk is also here to listen to your experiences of health and social care and to provide signposting advice. We will also do what we can to raise concerns if we see patterns of poor care emerging.
We also urge those working across the health and care system to not only listen when people speak out but to also take necessary action and ensure people know their feedback is taken seriously.
