Scottish Government

Expert Group on Acute Maternity Services: Reference Report

ANNEX A: REMIT AND MEMBERSHIP OF EXpert group on acute maternity services

Remit of the group

2. The Group is tasked to produce a model specification for the provision of acute maternity services within the context of A Framework for Maternity Services in Scotland, and essentially within existing resources. The Group should consider national, regional and local planning of maternity services, and promote innovative approaches to intrapartum care, consistent with the principles set out in the Framework. The specification will assist NHS Boards to plan and configure their acute maternity services.

4. The Group should review and summarise international approaches to intrapartum care and describe the present configuration of acute maternity services in Scotland. It should apply appropriate models of acute maternity care and delivery, consistent with the Framework, to Scottish geography and demography to ensure a woman-centred, safe service, available to women as close to their home as possible. The model service specification should describe how to maximise patient choice, whilst ensuring proper assessment and safe management of risk. The group should consider development of a regional approach to the management of high risk obstetric care, based on the hub and spoke model set out in the Acute Services Review.

6. The Group should include in the model specification for acute maternity services

• The range of professional skills required by the Scottish obstetric workforce, and practical proposals to achieve this;

• Describe the range of maternity care providers, patterns of work and employment contracts;

• Recommend arrangements for enhancing the skills and responsibilities of midwives;

• Describe midwives' role and responsibilities in midwife led services, and how they can be deployed as consultants;

• Identify innovative approaches to training and education for obstetric professionals; and

• Describe the support services required for the development of modern maternity services in Scotland, and in particular arrangements for transfer between services, transfer and retrieval and telemedicine.

Membership of the Group

Chair: Mrs Mary Mulligan, Deputy Minister for Health and Community Care

Education and clinical competency subgroup

Remit

The Education and Clinical Competency subgroup was tasked to:

1. Describe and match the competencies and skills required for each model with each professional group:

a. range of professional skills;

b. professional group.

2. Identify education and training programmes and opportunities that will ensure:

a. that clinicians have the required skills, competencies, confidence and decision making skills to successfully implement the identified model of maternity care;

b. that clinicians maintain the necessary skills and competencies in order to delivery quality, evidence based maternity care.

3. Identify innovative approaches to the education and training of maternity care professionals.

4. Consider how demographics might impact on the nature of care provision, differing educational requirements and maintaining clinical skills and competencies.

5. Identify ways in which telemedicine can impact on the education and skill maintenance of maternity care professionals in remote and rural settings.

Risk management subgroup

Remit

The Risk Management Subgroup was tasked to:

1. Identify models of maternity care and apply appropriate risk assessment structures to each model.

2. Develop a regional approach to the management of high risk obstetric care (hub and spoke model).

3. Describe the support services required for the development of a modern maternity service, especially:

4. Identify and specify national and regional risk management strategies.