Mothers rate Royal Surrey maternity service best in the country | News

New mums at Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust have rated their experience the best in the country in an annual report on maternity services.

The Guildford-based maternity service received the joint highest score in a comprehensive Care Quality Commission (CQC) assessment summarising the experiences of 25,515 patients across 121 NHS Trusts in England.

The survey tells a story of people’s experiences of maternity care provided before giving birth, during labour and delivery, and in the six-week postnatal period following birth.

As well as being one of two trusts to receive the survey’s top reviews, maternity services at Royal Surrey were given the best scores in the region and the Trust was one of only eight to be classed as ‘better than expected’ nationally. It scored above average in:

•        Women feeling listened to and treated with dignity and respect.
•        Support for mental health issues throughout pregnancy, labour and birth.
•        Women feeling that concerns raised in pregnancy are taken seriously and acted upon.
•        Women receiving a personalised approach to care and being involved in decision making.
•        Advice and support around infant feeding choices.

Louise Stead, Chief Executive at Royal Surrey, said:

“We are thrilled to receive this recognition from those using our maternity service, which is a testament to the dedication and hard work of our incredible maternity team. Our commitment to providing exceptional care is unwavering, and we will continue to strive to provide an excellent experience for our patients in every aspect of our services.”

The survey collected the experiences of people who gave birth during February 2023. At Royal Surrey 295 people were invited to complete the survey questionnaire and 57.9% per cent responded (compared to a national response rate of 41 per cent).

Amy Stubbs, Royal Surrey's Professional Director of Midwifery and Paediatric Nursing, said:

“Each and every birthing experience is important to us, and our team of midwives, doctors, support workers and administrative teams all work to achieve the highest standards day and night to provide the best care possible. It’s always fantastic to receive positive feedback from our mums, and we are delighted to hear that we are delivering over and above expectations. I’m extremely proud of our team and their commitment to our patients.”

“As a team, we are always looking for ways that we can deliver an even better service, so, as well as celebrating this brilliant result, we will be looking at the survey insight, combined with other patient feedback, to help us identity how we can further improve our care.”