A FURTHER blow has been dealt to Okehampton Hospital after the NHS trust in charge announced that its maternity unit will remain closed into the New Year.

The Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust has blamed ‘ongoing staff vacancies and long-term sickness absence’ for its decision to extend the closure of the birth centres at Okehampton and Honiton hospitals.

A statement from the trust, released on Tuesday, said: ‘The extension means that women will not be able to give birth at either site for a further three months until safe staffing levels have been attained.

‘The suspension will be reviewed again early in 2018.

‘We are however pleased to state that all antenatal and postnatal clinics, midwifery support and home birth services at Honiton and Okehampton are unaffected and running as normal.’

Zita Martinez, head of midwifery at the Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust, said:  ‘We recognise the significant impact that this may have on women who had hoped to birth at Honiton or Okehampton and are once again sorry for this.

‘Patient safety however remains our top priority and we are working as hard as we can to resolve this so that birth services at these centres can resume as soon as possible. 

‘For anyone requiring inpatient maternity care, we will make immediate arrangements for them to attend our main maternity unit in Exeter or Tiverton Birth Centre so that mother and baby continue to receive the highest standard of care.’

The decision has been greeted with anger in Okehampton, where mayor Jan Goffey has been vocal in the campaign against the closure of the unit.

The hospital was closed due to staff shortages in mid August. This came only six weeks after an NHS Acute Services Review recommended that midwifery-led unit at Okehampton should be closed permanently, in favour of women giving birth either at home or 25 miles away.

Cllr Goffey said she feared that this would now happen.

‘This hospital has been a maternity hospital since the 1800s and to lose it totally is very sad,’ said Cllr Goffey.

‘It is an absolute tragedy that we are seeing an end to maternity services in the town. Within 15 miles of Okehampton the population as a whole is some 37,000 people. That is the number of people who are being affected by these ward closures. A lot of people are very upset at the closures.

‘To expect women to travel 25 miles to a hospital is too far, and that is only if you live in the town — if you are out in the sticks it is even further,

‘If you can opt for a home birth, there are still midwives and community nurses trained to go out into homes, but there should be a facility for a speedy transfer to hospital should the need arise.

‘It is going to affect people who have a history of giving birth very rapidly and also first-time mothers, because instead of having a nice local unit where they know the midwives, and it is all very cosy and friendly and family can pop in and see them whenever they like, they are being taken to a very large impersonal facility that doesn’t have the same ambience. I’m not saying the staff aren’t wonderful, but it doesn’t have the same local feel that you get here.’

The 16 inpatient beds at the hospital, for people needing hospital care in and around the town, also closed this summer. The closure of the maternity services means that the hospital is now without any beds for patients, although it still offers pre and post natal care and more than 40 clinics.

Cllr Goffey said the staff shortages which are being blamed for the closure of the maternity services had been in part caused by the uncertainty about whether the maternity unit would close.

‘The trouble is the NHS is chronically under-staffed because people were voting with their feet over the uncertainty and leaving.’

‘Everybody has the utmost respect for the NHS staff on the frontline because they are under tremendous pressure. One can understand the need to cut costs and update systems and change the way things work if it is for the betterment of the service but to expect women in labour to travel 25 miles is too far.’

Martin Perry, chair of the Friends of Okehampton Hospital, said: ‘We know that following the removal of inpatient beds from our hospital there have been consequential staff changes and re-deployments that have led to a number of staff shortages and this has had its effect on maternity services recently.

‘Obviously we hope maternity services will be provided again in the New Year but in the meantime we have to accept the medical opinion that without adequate staff the maternity services in Okehampton would be unsafe. Patient safety must be the priority at all times.

‘One also has to take into account the figures concerned and in the last year (July 2016 to June 2017) there were 57 births in Okehampton — approximately one a week. I am told previous years were not very different.

‘It is important to emphasise that all other aspects of the maternity service such as antenatal and postnatal care, home births and midwifery services are continuing as before and the Royal Devon and Exeter trust has assured us that it will resume birthing facilities at Okehampton as soon as possible.

‘As the Friends of the Hospital we are continuing to provide equipment and assistance to the wonderful community nurse and midwife team we have in Okehampton as well as supporting the numerous clinics that continue to be held in the hospital.’

While women are still unable to give birth at the hospital, Okehampton Birth Centre is still open for clinics and midwife care and support 8am-8pm, seven days a week. Outside of these hours women should call the RD&E main maternity triage service on 01392 406616.