NHS Grampian publishes its 'Community Engagement and Feedback Report' surrounding maternity services at Dr Gray's
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NHS Grampian has published a report detailing feedback from the local community as it continues its journey towards delivering a consultant-led maternity service at Dr Gray's.
The Community Engagement and Feedback Report details the experiences of local woman who have given birth at the Elgin hospital, as well as those who have travelled to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary.
Scottish Health Secretary Humza Yousaf announced his intention to establish a consultant-led maternity unit at the hospital in March 2022, and, at the start of March, promised £6.6 million to do so.
Moray group Keep MUM welcomed the findings of the report.
"This report ensures women’s birth experiences and their reflections are placed decisively at the heart of maternity services," a statement said.
"Birth stories should never be dismissed as anecdotal evidence, nor women’s experiences minimised or trivialised.
"Those contained within this report speak eloquently of a maternity service in Moray which is causing ongoing anxiety and demonstrates the urgent need to re-introduce a consultant-led maternity service.
"Keep MUM’s aim is for most babies to be able to born in Moray. It would appear, from this report, that Moray women want that too and we are encouraged to hear that the plan to achieve that is now underway."
The report was made after a series of face-to-face community engagement sessions around Moray, which took place between October and December 2022.
Breastfeeding groups, baby care groups and nurseries held events. There was strong demand for the consultant-led maternity services at Dr Gray's at the events.
Simon Bokor-Ingram, chief officer for Moray Health and Social Care Partnership and NHS Grampian’s Moray portfolio lead, said: “Our aim is to ensure service changes are developed and delivered collaboratively with a range of stakeholders.
"We particularly value the contribution of those with lived experience, so engaging with the local community around maternity service provision is key.
“Working with stakeholders and carrying out lots of face-to-face engagement has helped us to understand the impact historic reductions in service have had as we begin the journey to expand the range of maternity services and empower more women to give birth locally with confidence.”
Hannah Ronald, the community engagement manager whose work is captured in the report, added: “Thank you so much to all members of the community who welcomed me at their groups and took the time to share their experiences with me, as well as everyone who has contributed ideas and personal stories more widely.
"The breadth of feedback that has been shared forms an invaluable resource. I see this as a basis for us to build on in future.
"While we have not been as visible in the past, I hope that transparently reporting the engagement work we are doing demonstrates that we are very much committed to developing future service provision alongside the local community.”
View the full report on NHS Grampian’s website: https://bit.ly/MorayMatCommEngagementFeedback
