New specialist medical centres for pregnancy

The NHS is rolling out specialist medical care centres for pregnant people with serious medical problems.

17 new centres of excellence will help those with pre-existing medical conditions or conditions that arise during pregnancy to access extra care quickly.

The NHS has a commitment to halve the maternal mortality rate by 2025.

There will be at least one centre in each region of the country.

Professor Jacqueline Dunkley-Bent, England’s Chief Midwifery Officer, said: “We know that pre-existing medical problems are a significant factor in the variation in rates of mortality for Black and Asian women.

“The establishment of these maternal medical networks will improve every woman’s access to specialist care for medical problems in pregnancy and will play an important part in our wider efforts to improve care for women and babies right across our maternity services.”

Dr Matthew Jolly, National Clinical Director for Maternity and Women’s Health, said: “For a number of years too often we have seen symptoms of serious medical problems being missed or misattributed to pregnancy.

“Maternal Medical Networks and their specialist centres are a vital step in improving the identification and management of potentially fatal medical conditions in pregnancy, wherever a woman receives care, and to ensure England continues to improve in its position as one of the safest countries in the world to give birth.”

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