Health Innovation West of England publish survey findings on maternity staff views, feelings and experiences of breastfeeding support and technology
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As part of a real-world evaluation of the use of a parenting app, we surveyed maternity staff to understand their views, feelings and experiences around breastfeeding support and the use of technology. We are working with Gloucestershire Local Maternity and Neonatal System (LMNS) to support their implementation of Anya, a smartphone parenting and breastfeeding app…
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Celebrating Black Maternity Matters
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Colleagues from across the West of England and beyond gathered at the Malcolm X Community Centre in Bristol on 7 December for a joyous celebration of our Black Maternity Matters programme and the achievements of all the participants and champions involved in cohorts one and two. Thanks to George Chan at Blue Fire Films for…
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Study shines light on successes of PReCePT programme
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The success of PReCePT, a programme to increase the use of magnesium sulphate to prevent cerebral palsy in premature babies, has been highlighted in a new paper published in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. The paper shares the findings of the Health Foundation funded PReCePT study, part of the national PReCePT programme…
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Improving maternity care – lessons from scaling up the PReCePT programme
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Enhanced quality improvement (QI) programmes may be necessary to support the adoption of best practice in maternity units with less developed integrated working practices, a new paper published in the Journal Implementation Science suggests. The research builds on ARC West’s evaluation of the AHSN Network’s national PReCePT programme, led by the West of England AHSN,…
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Anti-racist training in the Black Maternity Matters pilot shown to increase the cultural competency of maternity staff
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Evaluation of the pilot phase of Black Maternity Matters shows the project has successfully helped to increase the cultural competency of maternity staff, with the value of the education and training programme demonstrated through both participants’ feedback as well as their resulting actions. Black women* are four times more likely to die during pregnancy or…
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Working together to reduce caesarean birth infections
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The West of England AHSN is working collaboratively with the region’s six acute maternity hospital trusts on a new project to reduce surgical site infections (SSI) following caesarean births. In March 2023 the first wave of four trusts launched their use of the locally developed PreCiSSIon (Preventing Caesarean Birth Surgical Site Infection) care bundle. The…
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Evaluation finds PReCePT national programme effective in helping to prevent cerebral palsy in premature babies
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The PReCePT programme to increase the use of magnesium sulphate, a £1 injection that helps prevent cerebral palsy in premature babies, has been found effective according to an evaluation by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The findings, led by researchers at the University of Bristol, are published in the Archives of…
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Health Innovation Programme graduate secures £100k SBRI funding
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LatchAid – an award-winning breastfeeding and early parenthood support app and graduate of our 2018 Health Innovation Programme (HIP) – has been awarded £100,000 from SBRI Healthcare to address inequalities in maternity care. SBRI Healthcare is an Accelerated Access Collaborative (AAC) initiative – a partnership between patient groups, government bodies, industry and the NHS hosted by…
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Regional neonatal units celebrate achievements including highest delayed cord clamping rates
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Maternity and neonatal (MatNeo) units across the South West are celebrating achieving the highest rate of delayed cord clamping in England and Wales for the second year in a row, as measured by the 2021 National Neonatal Audit Programme (NNAP). Evidence shows that delaying cord clamping reduces death in preterm babies by nearly a third. Celebrating success Rates…
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Regional Perinatal Equity Network celebrates first anniversary
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Maternity and neonatal practitioners came together in the South West this month to celebrate one year since the launch of the Regional Perinatal Equity Network, marking the anniversary with talks on perinatal inequalities from speakers including obstetrician Dr Christine Ekechi, author Kim Thomas and the Positive Birth Company. The Regional Perinatal Equity Network (RPEN), a…
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