A maternity unit at West Wales’ largest hospital, which was previously labeled “not fit for purpose”, has been given better care for patients and newborns, according to a new report. The Health Inspectorate of Wales (HIW) completed an unannounced inspection of Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen over three days in November 2022, when inspectors inspected the antenatal and postnatal wards, the midwife-led unit, the maternity and triage assessment area. .

It was the first inspection of its kind since 2019, when the HIW identified that “a number of improvements are needed to ensure the service provides safe and effective care at all times and meets national health and care guidelines and standards.” You can keep up with the latest Carmarthenshire news by signing up for your local newsletter here.

Four years ago, in 2015, a report by the Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health concluded that the hospital’s maternity ward was “not fit for purpose”, adding that it was “too small, poorly equipped” and that it “provides a bad environment for women and officials.’

Read more: Dramatic rescue of two sheep stranded on a Welsh cliff for 10 days

Meanwhile, in 2016, a young couple were devastated after their newborn baby died due to gross errors by the medical staff at Glangvili Hospital. You can read more about it here. A public report by the Ombudsman for Health for Wales, published in 2018, said that a number of errors had been made in the case.

Referring to the people involved as Mr. and Mrs. A (the parents) and baby C, Ombudsman Nick Bennett said in his report: . this shouldn’t have happened. The unfairness of the decision to register the stillbirth was significant to Mr. and Mrs. A, as they believed that when baby C was born to them, he was alive and died in their arms. It is vital that the Hywel Dda University Board of Health learn from these mistakes to ensure they do not happen again.”

Responding to the report, Hywel University Board of Health CEO DDA Steve Moore said at the time: “We regret the treatment failures that have been identified and are writing to Ms. A to apologize. We accept the Ombudsman’s recommendations. Our team has already made many improvements to our services as we continue to strive to improve the service we provide.”

The hospital’s maternity unit has since undergone a major renovation and a new HIW report published on Thursday morning said: “Inspectors found that maternity care had improved since the previous HIW inspection in 2019, but still there are some areas that need attention for improvement.”

The report stated, “The team is committed to providing a high level of patient care. There were many examples where the inspection team witnessed the staff’s compassionate, kind and benevolent attitude towards patients and their families. Most of the patients we spoke to told us that they were happy and receiving good care at the hospital. Inspectors also noted that good mechanisms exist to provide bereavement support to patients and families.”

The report also said maternity staff were positive about the support they received, describing a “positive culture” regarding reporting and investigating incidents, while the management team were described as “visible, supportive and very committed to the team. “. . Improvements have also been made to work effectively with other health boards.

The inspection found that improvements had been made to the hospital’s security measures to ensure the full safety and security of babies on site, but it was noted that on the first night of the inspection, patient chart cabinets were left open and doors were left open. open. . Inspectors immediately reported this to senior management and the cabinet doors were subsequently closed. It also emerged that not all employees received the necessary training and that management needed to ensure that rotations were reviewed to ensure adequate resources.

Overall, the report states that “significant improvements have been made since our last inspection in 2019”. However, the report also concluded that “continuous improvements should focus on ensuring that staff adhere to clinical ward processes, such as that medication coolers are always locked when not in use and that files are locked away. are always closed”.

HIW confirmed that the Hywel Dda University Health Board, which led the health care at Glangvilly Hospital, had developed a plan containing a comprehensive set of actions to support further improvements.

Catherine Greaves, head of midwifery and women’s services at the board of health, said: “We are delighted to welcome the Welsh Inspectorate of Health inspection team to our maternity ward at Glangville Hospital. Our ambition and focus as a service is to meet the needs of our population in accordance with local and national reports and guidelines to provide women, mothers and families with a safe, reliable and fair standard of care for all.

“Our team’s commitment is reflected in the HIW inspection team’s findings, but we are not resting on our laurels. We are a service committed to continuous improvement and our aim is to provide services our communities can be proud of. . Our improvements will continue and address the report’s recommendations to provide ongoing assurance to our communities about the quality of the services we can provide and deliver.”

Alan Jones, CEO of HIW, said: “It was positive to see the significant changes and improvements made since our previous inspection. Salient issues of concern must be addressed to ensure continual improvement in the quality of care. We will continue to work with the service to ensure the timely progress of our findings.”

Read more:

  • Man wounds road worker in ‘revenge attack’ after being told to leave barricaded area
  • Pedophile claims phone with child abuse video belonged to a friend in Saudi Arabia
  • The man has been accused of causing the death of an amateur boxer by dangerous driving
  • Thug strangles his partner before threatening her with a Rambo knife to drop the charges
  • A pedophile created a chat room and found child pornography months after going to trial