Trust Board Febuary 2010 - Sandwell & West Birmingham Hospitals

SWBTB (2/10) 045 (a)
£508 589. Delivery of this financial position requires that 100% of future maternity income streams
translate into resources available to the Women and Children Division.
The Joint Health Scrutiny Committee supported Option 3 but with the caveat that the stand alone Birth
Centre is built and operational in Sandwell before maternity services are withdrawn from Sandwell
Hospital. The Project Steering Group has considered this carefully and whilst not able to recommend the
caveat on clinical safety and quality grounds it does recognise the importance of the concerns raised
and is recommending that further work is undertaken to explore options to safely minimise the time
between reconfiguring consultant led/high risk births to City Hospital and opening a stand alone Birth
Centre in Sandwell without delaying the reconfiguration of consultant led/high risk births. Within this
context it will be important to be clear that the priority must be the maintenance of the maximum possible
level of safety and quality.
18. RECOMMENDATION
On the basis of the above analysis the Trust Board is recommended to:
• AGREE the business case for change.
• APPROVE the Project Steering Group’s recommended option i.e. Option 3: All consultant
led care and, all in-patient services and, temporarily all births would transfer to City
Hospital. A Stand Alone Midwifery Led Birth Centre would be developed within Sandwell
and, once operational, some midwifery led low risk births would relocate to the new
centre in Sandwell. Low risk midwifery led antenatal care and routine screening will be
available in Sandwell and at City Hospital. Consultant led antenatal care would be
relocated to City Hospital. All Neonatal care would be provided at City Hospital.
• APPROVE the capital investment of £1.85 million required to support Option 3 and
endorse the financial consequences of Option 3 i.e. targeting an overall improvement in
the trading position of maternity services by 2013/14 of £508 589, recognising that to
achieve this 100% of future maternity income streams need to translate into resources
available to the Women and Children Division.
• AGREE to the Project Steering Group undertaking further work to explore options to safely
minimise the time between reconfiguring consultant led/high risk births to City Hospital and
opening a stand alone Birth Centre in Sandwell without delaying the reconfiguration of consultant
led/high risk births. To be clear however, that the priority must be the maintenance of the
maximum possible level of safety and quality.
• AGREE to a more detailed implementation plan being presented to the Trust Board at its May
meeting.
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