Government announces major redesign of neonatal services

Mothers and new babies will be offered better support as part of plans designed to make the NHS one of the best places in the world to give birth.

The measures aim to improve safety, quality and continuity of care to halve stillbirths, maternal and infant deaths and serious brain injuries in newborn babies by 2025.

At the heart of these plans is a major redesign of neonatal services, led by an expansion in staff numbers – with more expert neonatal nurses and specialists, and new roles for allied health professionals.

The measures also include digitising the paper child health record, improved accommodation for critically ill newborn babies and support from dedicated care co-ordinators from 2021 to 2022. All maternity services will be asked to deliver an accredited, evidence-based infant feeding programme in 2019 to 2020, such as the UNICEF Baby Friendly initiative.

The plans are backed by a funding increase of £20.5 billion every year by 2023 to 2024 for the NHS in England.