Latest news with #pregnancycare
The Independent
11-08-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Expectant mothers to bypass GP and go straight to midwife
Expectant mothers are to bypass seeing their GP and can now book straight in with their midwife for pregnancy care, NHS officials have announced. Traditionally, mothers-to-be made an appointment with their family doctor to tell them the news before being booked in with their midwife. And in recent years, online self-referral has been introduced by local health bodies. But NHS leaders said that only half of expectant mothers were using these services directly, with many going 'unnecessarily' to their GP to access maternity care. Women will now be able to refer themselves to local maternity services 'at the touch of a button' via which will give them faster first appointments, NHS England said. It is hoped that the move could free up tens of thousands of appointments for overstretched GPs. Officials stressed that women can still see a GP if they would like to, adding that some with long-term health conditions will need to discuss changes to their care or treatment plans with a doctor. Health officials said that first midwife appointments are 'vital', but only 62% of these happened within the first 10 weeks of pregnancy in 2023/24. There are around 600,000 babies born each year in England and Wales. NHS England said that it is estimated that the new service could lead to 180,000 fewer calls to GPs and up to 30,000 fewer general practice appointments each year. But around a quarter of local health bodies are yet to 'connect' to the national service, it added, with pregnant women in these areas able to self-refer via local trust sites. 'It's so important that newly pregnant women get the support they need as soon as possible, so this new tool makes it easier than ever to book that all-important first maternity care appointment,' said Kate Brintworth, NHS chief midwife. 'Making this process simpler at the touch of a button is a vital step in empowering women to take control of their pregnancy journey right from the very start and improving access to timely, personalised care.' Dr Claire Fuller, NHS England's national medical director, said: 'GPs are available for any pregnant women who have concerns about their pregnancy they need to discuss, or other health conditions that need monitoring, but in many cases, GP teams don't need to be the first point of contact when someone finds out they're pregnant. 'This quick and easy tool can help ease pressure on practice teams, who won't need to make the referral themselves, and by freeing up that time there will hopefully be a benefit for other patients who are looking to make an appointment with their GP.' Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said: 'Early pregnancy should be about joy and excitement – not wrestling with NHS bureaucracy to book a midwife appointment. 'That's why we've overhauled the online referral system. No more endless phone calls or form-filling. Just a simple online service that lets you book those crucial first appointments with a few clicks.' Abbie Aplin, director of maternity improvement and partnerships at the Royal College of Midwives, said: 'Giving women more control and more agency over their care during pregnancy, labour, birth and the postnatal period can only be a good thing. 'Midwives are best placed to support women to make informed choices about their care, so the earlier the better in terms of access. 'We do have to be mindful, though, of those who don't have easy access to smartphones and technology. 'We already see significant inequalities of outcome for women living with social deprivation so the NHS needs to ensure that those gaps aren't widened yet further.' Professor Kamila Hawthorne, chairwoman of the Royal College of GPs, said: 'It's vital that women are able to access the most appropriate person-centred care from the earliest stages and throughout their pregnancy. 'In most cases this will be provided by midwife teams, so this initiative, as long as it is implemented correctly, makes sense. 'It's important that women in early pregnancy still know they can come to their GP directly with any concerns about their pregnancy or health – and for women with existing health conditions, we would advise that they remain in contact with their GP as their pregnancy progresses. 'Anyone that has any issues accessing online referrals can also still be referred to appropriate maternity care through their GP practice.'
CNA
11-07-2025
- Health
- CNA
CNA938 Rewind - The Wellness Hour - Supporting first time parents
Becoming a parent for the first time can be daunting. Cheryl Goh explores the support available today from pregnancy care and newborn prep to breastfeeding guidance and wellness tips from Sheryl Sim, Founder, My First Love.
Times
26-06-2025
- Health
- Times
UK slides down women's health rankings for fourth year in a row
The UK has dropped down a worldwide women's health league for the fourth consecutive year, as countries such as Lithuania, Kazakhstan and Saudi Arabia perform better. Experts described the change as 'alarming' and 'unacceptable', as it was also revealed women in the UK were more likely to experience poor emotional health and chronic pain than the EU average. There has been a year-on-year decline in how women in the UK rate their pregnancy care, and they were less likely to be screened for conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and cancer than in comparable countries, the global study found. The UK now ranks at just 41 out of 142 countries in the Hologic Global Women's Health Index, down from 37 last year and 30 in 2023. The annual league table is based on surveys of more than 78,000 women globally. The UK is also below the US, where women's healthcare has been hit by restrictions on access to abortion in many states. The report found women living in the UK were now more likely to experience negative feelings such as sadness, stress and anger than they were in 2020 during the pandemic, with 39 per cent saying they felt 'worry'. The number of women in the UK who thought their pregnancy care was 'high quality' has also dropped every year since the survey began, falling from 79 per cent four years ago to 72 per cent in this year's report. • Hilary Rose: Gynaecology is seen as a lifestyle medicine — women are being betrayed And a record 29 per cent of UK women said they experienced daily physical pain, up from 24 per cent four years ago. More than 25 per cent said they were limited in daily activities by ongoing health issues. Janet Lindsay, the chief executive of the charity Wellbeing of Women, said: 'These figures are unacceptable for one of the world's wealthier nations and reflect long-standing underinvestment in women's health. 'Women's health should not be treated as an afterthought. It requires sustained political leadership, better access to care, increased research funding, and a shift in culture that truly values and listens to women.' Lindsay called for women's health to be put at 'the heart of our national agenda' in the government's forthcoming ten-year plan for the NHS. • NHS drops dementia and women's health targets to end 'overspending' Researchers blamed the rankings slide on the UK's failure to act to improve women's healthcare since the pandemic, despite the creation of a women's health strategy. 'While the women's health strategy, now nearly three years in, has delivered some progress, it is yet to deliver significant impact,' the report's authors said. 'The latest data exposes a widening gap between policy ambition and the everyday experiences of women.' Professor Ranee Thakar, president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, added: 'Too often, systemic, operational, structural and cultural issues mean women do not get the care they deserve. The government's ten-year health plan offers a vital opportunity to change this.' For the index, each country was assigned a score based on its performance in five areas of women's health and wellbeing: preventive care (such as screening for cancer and high blood pressure); basic needs (including ease of access to food and housing); health and safety (including how safe women feel walking at night and the quality of pregnancy care); individual health (including how pain affects women's daily lives); and emotional health. The UK scored 59 out of 100, putting it below the EU average of 60 and on a par with Iceland, Bulgaria and France. Although the UK ranked in the top third of countries worldwide, it was in the bottom third in Europe, placed at just 23 out of 31 European countries. Other countries have made progress and moved ahead. Slovenia, for example, was ranked at 27 out of 31 European countries last year, but has now edged in front of the UK into 19th place. 'This is a four-year decline that no one can ignore,' said Tim Simpson, a senior director at Hologic. 'Women's health must remain a national priority, yet this data shows we are losing ground.' The top-ranked countries globally were Taiwan (68), Kuwait (67), Austria (66), Switzerland (65) and Finland (65). • Women left in pain by healthcare no better than Kosovo, poll finds Other countries which outperformed the UK included Bahrain, which was eighth overall with a score of 64, Kazakhstan (13th with a score of 63), Saudi Arabia (14th with a score of 63), Slovenia (31st with a score of 60) and Kosovo (35th with a score of 60). New Zealand was ranked at 37th and the USA at 38th, both with a score of 60, while Australia dropped to 43rd place, with a score of 59. The worst countries for women's health were Afghanistan, with a score of 30, followed by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (34), Chad (35), Sierra Leone (36) and Liberia (37). Globally, the average score was 53. This year's index was compiled based on data obtained from interviews carried out in 2023 with around 500 women in each country by the global analytics firm Gallup and Hologic, a medical technology company specialising in women's health. A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said that the previous government was in power at the time the surveys for the report were carried out. 'Women have been let down by a health service which was not focused on their needs, which is why we are on a mission to get the NHS working for women,' the spokesman added. 'Equality will be at the heart of our ten-year health plan to fix the NHS. 'We're making progress, including adding 4.2 million extra appointments, tackling gynaecology waiting lists using the private sector, trialling AI for breast cancer screening, and from October this year, making emergency hormonal contraception free in pharmacies. 'There's still more to do, and we are committed to turning commitments into tangible action.'
