Polly has secured important improvements to local maternity and early pregnancy services at Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Hospital (QEQM) in Margate following concerns raised by a constituent about standards of care.
Polly first became aware of the case after meeting a local couple at a community coffee morning in Ramsgate last October, who shared serious shortcomings in the care they had received from QEQM’s early pregnancy services.
Following the meeting, Polly formally raised the case with East Kent NHS Trust (EKHNHS) and the Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board (KMICB), requesting a full investigation and urgent improvements to prevent other families facing similar distress.
In January, Polly received a full response confirming that the care provided fell below the expected standard, alongside a commitment to improve services. These include:
- Senior Women’s Health managers actively exploring changes so that patients attending early pregnancy scans are no longer seen in maternity units, to ensure women experiencing early pregnancy trauma have privacy and are separate from women in the later stages of pregnancy.
- The introduction of a new 24-hour direct Early Pregnancy telephone triage service.
- A full review of communication processes within Early Pregnancy and Community Midwifery teams, to ensure women at risk of miscarriage receive timely communication, and records are updated quickly to ensure those who have experienced a miscarriage do not continue to receive communications about pregnancy-related care, leading to further trauma.
Speaking after receiving the response, Polly said:
“This was a really distressing case, and I am grateful to the constituents involved for having the courage to come forward and share their experiences of the shortcomings in care they received at QEQM to ensure others did not have to experience what they went through.
“I know how daunting it can feel to raise a complaint with NHS services, which is why my team and I are always ready to support constituents in pursuing sensitive cases like this one. I hope the changes I have secured will ensure that other families receive the compassionate, high-quality care they deserve at QEQM.
“As your local MP, I am always here to help, so please don’t hesitate to get in touch if there is anything I can support you with.”
Polly continues to work closely with local NHS leaders to push for higher standards of care and ensure lessons are learned when services fall short.