MOTHERS in Worcestershire say maternity care in the area is among the best in the country, according to a new survey.

The survey, commissioned by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) asked over 17,000 women around the country a series of questions about the care they received before, during and after birth and aspects of care in the county ranked favourably against other regions in 13 of the 19 questions asked.

Worcestershire Acute NHS Trust achieved its highest rankings in partner engagement and involvement and length of stay in hospital following births. It also received positive feedback in confidence and trust in staff, Clear communication and information, the promotion of patient choice during labour and the kindness and understanding of staff.

Becky Williams, interim divisional director of operations for women and children’s services at the trust, said: “We’re delighted that our patients feel listened to, and feel confident in our care.

“Our Maternity teams work extremely hard to give ladies and their families the best possible patient experience, which is demonstrated in these results.

“We are constantly looking for new ways to make improvements to our service by listening to and acting on feedback.

“We have recently launched our Continuity of Carer pilot which we are anticipating will further improve the maternity journey for women in our care, as it aims to ensure that more women see their named midwife, or a midwife from a small team, before, during and after birth.”

The survey was conducted by interviewing women who had given birth in January and February 2018 and data collection was done between April and August that year.

The findings of the study are being used by the NHS to influence future improvements and decision making in hospitals throughout the country.

129 NHS trusts were asked for their feedback in the study provided they had at least 300 live births per year.

Also included was the finding that the average age of mothers across the country has increased, with more women over the age of 30 giving birth year on year with the majority of respondents (71 per cent) being over the age of 30.