NMC responds to Baby Lifeline's Mind the Gap report

Baby Lifeline published their Mind the Gap 2021 report which explores what training looked like for the maternity services workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Verena Wallace, Senior Midwifery Advisor at the NMC, said:

“Midwives and others working in maternity services have worked incredibly hard to deliver excellent care in extremely challenging circumstances throughout the pandemic. We know that many of those challenges persist.

“Training is central to making maternity services as safe as they can be. That’s because personal development makes people feel valued, and helps them keep their skills up to date. It also plays a key part in retaining talented people, and it fits our revalidation requirements. Therefore it’s concerning that Covid-19 has impacted on training, and that training around avoidable deaths and harm is patchy. Addressing this has to be a priority. 

“While we’re pleased to see recent additional funding for maternity services, it’s essential that professionals get the time to learn as well as the time to care. Training needs to reflect the demands of modern maternity services and play a part in tackling health inequalities. Our new Future Midwife standards will help as they continues to embed across the UK.”

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