Anger as Cheltenham maternity unit "temporary closure" approaches fourth anniversary
The Aveta birth centre at Cheltenham General Hospital was closed temporarily in 2022
“People are angry” as the fourth anniversary of the temporary closure of the maternity unit at Cheltenham General Hospital is fast approaching with no date set to reopen it.
The Aveta birth centre at Cheltenham General Hospital was closed temporarily in 2022 due to staff shortages and a need to ensure safety, according to hospital bosses.
The overnight postnatal beds at Stroud General Hospital were closed later that year and remain closed.
And home births were also suspended in November last year due to severe safety concerns regarding staffing levels.
An update on maternity services was given to the health overview and scrutiny committee at Gloucestershire County Council this week.
And Councillor Suzanne Williams (LD, Hesters Way and Springbank) spoke of the importance of reopening the maternity unit in the spa town.
“Obviously we’ve got the problem in Cheltenham,” she told the meeting on March 10th.
“Being within the community matters to people, it makes a difference to what happens.”
She went on to say that “even having the name Cheltenham on the birth certificate matters to people rather than having Gloucester.
“I presume that’s the same for the Forest of Dean people who don’t want Gloucester on their birth certificates.”
Health chiefs said they would be looking at the whole maternity service in the coming months but will “have to be realistic” with how they improve the outcomes for residents within “a reasonable resource envelope”.
“That’s some of the conversation we’ll want to have with people is what’s important to them in terms of their care and where it’s provided,” NHS Gloucestershire Chief Executive Sarah Truelove said.
Councillor Andrew Gravells (C, Abbey) said the temporary closure was now in its fourth year and was “semi-permanent”.
“How much longer do you think people in Stroud and Cheltenham will have to wait until the outcome of those services is determined?
“It’s not a temporary closure after four years. It’s almost a semi-permanent closure and I think a lot of people are angry.”
And Cllr Richard Dean (G, Dursley) said people needed to know that progress was being made to reopen the units and what the timeline for it would be.
Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Chief Executive Kevin McNamara said they recognise that the temporary closure has gone on for too long.
“That is partly the challenge we have had around maternity services more generally,” he said.
“The real focus for us is how can we service those units in a way that is safe so that we aren’t here in a year or two’s time talking about safety incidents and things like that.”
He said they have never been 100 per cent confident on the evidence base of whether they have their services in the right locations and delivered in the right way to meet people’s needs.
Mr McNamara added they would bring the “case for change” to the committee in the next few months and it would be a “key part of what that plan starts to look like”.
He also cofirmed they would be allowing home births again but could not commit to a date yet.
“We are really committed through this work that Sarah has described into the case for change about articulating how we will do that in a more modern, safer, more sustainable way,” he said referring to maternity services.
“It’s not something we are seeking to kick into the long grass at all.”
The case for change will be presented to councillors in May but it will not provide answers about when the units would reopen, the committee heard.
However, it would allow health chiefs to then “start the conversation about what the options could be”.