Birth Centre Negligence

This week's press coverage of the Theo Kramer birth centre negligence case has led me to consider the value of birthing centres and the role these centres play in the delivery of some of the 700,000 babies born in the UK each year.

Theo, who is represented by JMW Solicitors, has this week been awarded £6.4 million settlement after Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust acknowledged that Edgware Birthing Centre was negligent. As a consequence of the events surrounding his birth, Theo has been left with brain damage.

There is often debate in the media about birthing centres. So what are the main differences in the care received at a birthing centre compared to a hospital maternity unit?

Birthing centres typically only accept expectant mothers who are 'low risk'. The units are often midwife-led and provide facilities such as ensuite birthing rooms, birth pools and birth balls. Partners are encouraged to stay overnight with the expectant mothers and as such beds are provided. The main advantage is that the care is, in theory, 'One -to -One’; the centres aim to achieve a relaxed atmosphere.

The major disadvantage of giving birth at a birthing centre is the lack of medical care. This limits the care they can provide, for example, caesarean sections, epidurals and some forms of pain relief can not be administered. Birth Centres may not have the same level of facilities to monitor the baby before birth as was the case with Theo. However, most are linked to a nearby hospital and transfer can me made to an obstetric unit. One of the issues with Theo's delivery was that the transfer to the nearby hospital was not as timely or smooth as would be expected. Transfer rates need to be improved to ensure that if a complication develops that an appropriate delivery is commenced as soon as possible.

There is no doubt that birthing centres are an important asset in today's NHS - providing a second tier to labour care in a particularly overstretched area of healthcare. However, appropriate staffing levels, training, transfer rates and up-to-date equipment are necessary for these centres to ensure that clinical standards are maintained, and as this case demonstrates, tragedies avoided.