Third of midwives are aged over 50 as RCM needs 3,500 more

February 7, 2017

7,200 midwives are over 50, including 1,000 who are over 60
There are around 21,600 midwives in England, but RCM needs at least 25,100
Some applicants are put off by the government scrapping grants of up to £20k

Daily Mail Reporter

Published:
18:33 EST, 6 February 2017

|
Updated:
20:12 EST, 6 February 2017

e-mail

View
comments

Maternity services are on the brink of a crisis because so many midwives are approaching retirement, healthcare leaders warn.

A third of midwives in England are over the age of 50, around 7,200 in total, including 1,000 who are over 60.

The Royal College of Midwives also says the country needs an extra 3,500 professionals to cope with the rising birthrate.

A third of midwives are over the age of 50, including 1,000 who are over 60. The Royal College of Midwives says the country needs an extra 3,500 professionals to cope with the rising birthrate

Births are becoming more complex, due to factors such as the rising number of older mothers and those who are obese. There are around 21,600 full-time midwives in England but the RCM believes at least 25,100 are needed to ensure wards are run safely.

Award winning nurse who spiralled into depression after he…

NHS chiefs could axe 24 AE wards as part of huge shake-up:…
Health tourists will have to pay BEFORE they get treatment:…

It is worried that the retiring staff will not be replaced by younger students coming up from university. Some applicants have been put off by the Government’s scrapping of grants worth up to £20,000 for trainees and replacing them with loans.

HOSPITALS ‘TO GET ADVANCED WARNINGS OF HYGIENE CHECKS’

Hospitals get advance warning of random hygiene spot checks, academics claim.

They are meant to get no more than 48 hours notice that inspectors are coming. Research by experts at Oxford University and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine suggests they know weeks in advance.

The scientists, whose work is published in the Health Affairs journal, compared patient surveys from 205 NHS hospitals in England from 2011 to 2014 to inspection dates. Patients were up to 11 per cent more likely to report ‘excellent’ cleanliness in the month before a spot-check.

NHS Improvement said checks complement patient-led assessments to help ensure quality.

Cathy Warwick, chief executive of the RCM, said: ‘A vast proportion of our midwives are close to retirement. They are doing great work every day. But it is an inescapable fact that they will soon take their well-deserved retirement.

‘That will challenge our maternity units and put the whole system potentially on the brink of collapse. One in three midwives in England are now in their fifties or sixties and the RCM remains most concerned that there are not enough newly-qualified midwives coming in to staff an already understaffed maternity service.

‘Right across the UK we are not seeing enough midwives being taken on. Older midwives will be lost to retirement soon and with this we lose their experience and their ability to train and guide younger midwives.

‘This situation cannot be ignored any longer. If we wait there will not be enough time for us to train new midwives and get them into the service.’ Last month the National Childbirth Trust warned that women were being treated like ‘cattle’ or like ‘products on a conveyor belt’ in overstretched units.

Freedom of Information requests in 2015 found that half of hospitals had to close their doors to women giving birth at least once as they were too busy.

Health minister Philip Dunne said: ‘Patients should be reassured that we are actively ensuring we continue to have enough midwives in the NHS.

The RCM worry that applicants are put off by the government’s scrapping of grants of up to £20,000. Freedom of Information requests in 2015 found that half of hospitals had to close their doors to women giving birth at least once as they were too busy

‘Already there are over 2,100 more since 2010, with 6,300 more in training.

‘The way we model midwife training places takes into account projected retirement rates.

‘We have also invested millions of pounds in staff training and new equipment to help the NHS become one of the safest places in the world to have a baby.’