Our casework revealed that the lives of mothers and babies could be put at risk because of an inherent conflict of interest in the supervision of midwives.
The King's Fund was commissioned by the Nursing and Midwifery Council to draw up recommendations to improve the regulation of midwives. The NMC council voted yes to those recommendations today. The board papers are online and you can download them. You can also read the King's Fund recommendations here.
Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman Julie Mellor said:
This landmark decision hails as a result of families making complaints to the Ombudsman Service. We all owe them a debt of gratitude as their actions will improve the safety of mothers and babies in the future.
'Our midwifery report, based on complaints we received about local midwifery investigations, found that the lives of mothers and babies could be put at risk because supervisors of midwives have two inherently conflicting roles. They investigate serious incidents on behalf of the regulator whilst often being responsible for the development and support of these same midwives, who may also be their peers. As a result safety may not always be at the heart of local investigations and lessons from serious incidents involving midwives may not be learnt.
'Today's decision will lead to a more modern and robust regulation of the midwifery profession with safety at the heart of what it does.
'We now look to the next government to take forward the legislative changes needed at the earliest opportunity.'
Notes to editors
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman Midwifery Regulation & Supervision: recommendations for change was published in December 2013.