Asked by: Jeremy Hunt (Conservative - South West Surrey)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he expects to have completed his consideration of recommendation 1 of the Health and Social Care Select Committee's report on the safety of maternity services in England, HC 19, published on 6 July 2021.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Government response to the Committee’s report set out that we would consider an assessment of midwifery and obstetric workforce levels to inform considerations of future funding. In early 2022, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists will provide information on the number of obstetricians at all grades required in maternity units. By June 2022, a complex workforce tool will be developed which can be used by maternity units to calculate the number of obstetricians required. This information will inform considerations of the Committee’s recommendation.
Asked by: Jeremy Hunt (Conservative - South West Surrey)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he expects the new maternity workforce planning tool that he commissioned from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists to be ready.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Department awarded a grant to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in July 2021 to develop a tool calculate the requirements for the number of obstetricians in maternity units in England. In early 2022, the College will provide detailed information on the number of obstetricians required with the tool to be developed by June 2022.
Asked by: Jeremy Hunt (Conservative - South West Surrey)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) midwives and (b) obstetricians there are working in NHS England.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
NHS Digital publishes Hospital and Community Health Services workforce statistics for England. These include staff working in hospital trusts and clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), but excludes staff working in primary care, general practitioner surgeries, local authorities, and other providers.
As of the end of July 2021, there were 21,942 full time equivalent (FTE) midwives working in National Health Service trusts and CCGs. As of the end of June 2021, there were 6,305 FTE doctors working in the speciality of obstetrics and gynaecology in NHS trusts and CCGs. This includes 2,542 FTE consultants.