Maternity services remain suspended at hospital

Birthing services at a hospital in north Devon remain suspended following its latest "readiness assessment".

The maternity unit at North Devon District Hospital (NDDH) has been closed since 11 August due to staffing problems, with expectant parents calling the situation a "nightmare".

The Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust said it remained "committed to reopening birthing services at NDDH as soon as possible" and was continuing its efforts to "recruit both temporary and substantive staff".

Catherine Mchomvu, chief executive of Devon Antenatal Family Centre, said the delay was "disappointing" .

The suspension of the hospital, which serves north Devon and part of north-east Cornwall, has meant pregnant mothers in Barnstaple now face a 53-mile (85km) trip to Exeter to give birth.

Among them is Rebekah Hester, from Ilfracombe, who is due to give birth in December.

She previously told the BBC the realisation of a birth which may be not go as planned had been "terrifying".

She said: "You turn to midwives and you turn to Google, and Google is saying an hour-and-a-half drive is too far, you need to find a closer maternity unit, or you need to watch these tutorials on giving birth and home deliveries."

Sean and Amy, from Hartland, said last month they feared they would not make it to a hospital in time for the birth of their second son due to facing a substantial journey to either Plymouth or Exeter.

Sean said the pair had seriously considered booking a C-section "which wouldn't have been ideal".

The dad, who welcomed his son at Derriford Hospital earlier this month, said: "It seemed like there wasn't any help for anyone who chose Plymouth hospital rather than Exeter.

"I didn't have the words to describe the anger last time [we spoke]."

He said his family was "very fortunate" that their birth went well, but added: "I wouldn't want anyone to have to go through the anxiety and the unknown that we've had to go through.

"It needs to reopen, they can't carry on with this anymore."

The trust said it began planning for a potential temporary suspension to services in July due to serious staffing issues.

At the beginning of August, it said it had explored every option including securing locum cover and mutual aid support from partner organisations and concluded a temporary suspension was the best solution.

A provisional reopening date was initially set for 29 September, however, bosses later said the service was not in a position to reopen then.

Consultants have since said they have "no confidence" in the ability of the executive board overseeing the hospital to ensure equitable, safe and sustainable local access to healthcare.

The chief executive of Devon Antenatal Family Centre said she had noticed a rise in affected mothers opting for elected Caesarean sections to "reduce and minimise the risk of fast labours on the road" and the "unexpected coming to reality".

"Women are worried so they're opting for a higher risk birth of having a Caesarean within a low risk pregnancy," Mchomvu said.

"Nobody is asking for an unsafe service to be reopened, that is not what anybody wants.

"What we want is for the service to be reopened, but we want it reopened sustainably and for long term. We need to have a safe reliable service women can depend on when they need it regardless of when that might be."

In its latest update the hospital trust said it knew the continued suspension was "causing worry and uncertainty".

It said while the suspension continued "all current support arrangements remain in place".

Additional clinical, financial and travel support had been put in place to support women during their pregnancy, including extra appointments, accommodation expenses and how to access free taxis, the trust said.

Women are advised to contact maternity triage on 01392 406616 early if they think they may be in labour or have urgent concerns.

The trust said: "Patient safety remains the overriding priority; staffing, induction, rotas and operational arrangements must all be fully assured before reopening."

It said: "Once we meet our readiness assessment criteria, we will be able to reopen birthing services two weeks later."

The next readiness assessment is due to take place on 26 October.

Follow BBC Devon on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@bbc.co.uk.