Source · Select Committees · Health and Social Care Committee
Recommendation 13
13
Accepted in Part
Require the Department to update and publish the RCOG maternity staffing tool.
Recommendation
We urge the Department to update and publish the tool produced by RCOG in time for the rollout of the upcoming refreshed Workforce Plan, so that every maternity unit can use it to plan effectively, ensure appropriate staffing and deliver consistent, safe care to all mothers and their babies. (Recommendation, Paragraph 65) Data
Government Response Summary
NHS England is collaborating with the RCOG to produce a set of principles and expectations to guide job planning for obstetric consultants at trust level, aiming to share this work as soon as possible to support planning for optimal staffing levels, rather than explicitly updating and publishing the original RCOG tool.
Government Response
Accepted in Part
HM Government
Accepted in Part
NHS England is working in collaboration with the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) to support trusts to ensure optimal staffing levels are in place to provide high-quality maternity care services. RCOG provided a comprehensive census of the obstetric workforce at a trust level, including possible comparisons with unit acuity (a measure of the severity of a patient’s condition and the urgency with which they need to be assessed). It demonstrated significant variation with no real guide as to what level of staffing is safe. In collaboration with RCOG and regional maternity teams, NHS England is producing a set of principles and expectations to guide job planning for obstetric consultants at trust level, which will lay out what activities must be covered to provide a safe maternity service. NHS England and RCOG will aim to share this work as soon as possible to support planning.