Midwife & Baby
All healthcare professionals, including midwives, will be unable to practice without Professional Indemnity Insurance (PII) due to new EU legislation.
It will be illegal for midwives without insurance to continue to provide midwifery care.
Some fear that the new legislation could increase pressure on the NHS and reduce women’s options of where to give birth.
Midwives who work for the NHS are insured by their employers, women expecting to give birth within the next few days are told not to worry.
Independent midwives (IMs) provide continuity of care for women during pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period.
They are self-employed and the cost of their services averages around £3,500-£4500 for a full package of antenatal and postnatal care, and attendance at birth. The fee can be payable in instalments to ensure their services are affordable to clients.
However, there is an alternative solution for independent midwives to get affordable insurance so that they can continue to practice and offer women a choice of who cares for them throughout pregnancy and childbirth.
UK Birth Centres (UKBC) is one of only two private midwifery organisations with PII cover, allowing its independent midwives to continue to practice legally in the UK. It is also the only fully insured national provider of midwifery services, aside from the NHS.
Tracy Thomas, clinical director at UKBC said: “We want to make it clear that this new legislation will not kill off independent midwifery, it will just change how it operates. Women will still have a choice and can continue to have the birth they want in the place that they choose.
“The systems and structure we have in place means that our IMs can continue to have independence and offer mums and babies quality one-to-one care, with full PII provision.”
UKBC also works in partnership with the NHS and has contracts in place with a number of NHS Trusts across the UK to ensure that expectant mums receive the best possible care from the most appropriate health professionals, in a choice of locations.
Thomas continues: “We are proud of our unique and collaborative approach with the NHS, which enables us to provide support and additional maternity services to women. It’s all about giving women more care choices and better access to care."
For more information about the legislation, Tracy Thomas from UK Birth Centres, will be hosting a Live Tweet Chat on Thursday 17th July from 2pm-5pm. #midwifelegislation.