Minister praises ‘outstanding’ maternity unit | News

Our maternity team were delighted to welcome Baroness Merron to the unit on a fact finding mission to learn about our successes and challenges.

We were the first Maternity Unit the Minister, who is a member of the House of Lords, has visited since being appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Patient Safety, Women’s Health and Mental Health.

Baroness Merron described our Maternity Unit as ‘fantastic’ and ‘impressive,’ during her visit on Friday.

She was also joined by Kate Brintworth, Chief Midwifery Officer for NHS England, and Professor Donald Peebles, National Clinical Director for Maternity and a Professor of Maternal Fetal Medicine at University College London.

Speaking during the visit Baroness Merron said:

“I knew that Royal Surrey had a very impressive Maternity Unit and I was keen to hear what is working well, so that we can look to roll out good practice elsewhere.

“What you do here at Royal Surrey is fantastic and I am very grateful for the continued hard work of all the team.”

During the visit Baroness Merron spoke to members of the maternity senior leadership team and toured our CQC rated ‘outstanding’ unit and our Special Care Baby Unit.

The Minister also heard about some of the team’s innovative work, such as the Patient Portal, the likes of which is not available at any other NHS Trust.

She also met Chief Operating Officer, Matt Jarratt and Chair, Joss Bigmore.

Speaking after the visit, Joss said: “We know that we have an outstanding Maternity Unit and we are quite rightly incredibly proud of the treatment and care they provide.

“Today it was fantastic to hear that our national colleagues at NHS England are also proud of the fantastic service that we deliver.

“It is great to see our team being recognised for their good practice and sharing their learning to help drive improvements and inspire others across the NHS.”