Denis Naughten
Ceist:643 Mr. Naughten asked the Minister for Health and Children the plans he has to develop midwifery services here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22458/01]
Written Answers. - Midwifery Services.
The Commission on Nursing report has provided a solid framework for the enhancement of the delivery of midwifery services through the development of a new clinical career pathway for midwives. This framework provides for the creation of clinical midwife specialist and advanced midwife practitioner posts.
A National Council for the Professional Development of Nursing and Midwifery has been established to give guidance in relation to the development of such posts based on service and patient needs. The national council has approved 26 applications for clinical midwife posts to date.
Denis Naughten
Ceist:644 Mr. Naughten asked the Minister for Health and Children the plans he has to review the home births programmes; if he will expand this service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22459/01]
Experience in Ireland over many decades has demonstrated the safety for both mother and baby of being delivered in consultant staffed maternity units. International evidence in recent years, however, has demonstrated that in selected cases, alternative arrangements such as home birth can lead to safe delivery for mother and baby.
The provision of maternity services generally is the responsibility of the health boards. However, health boards are experiencing difficulties in providing services for home births because of the practice of hospital confinement over the past 20 to 25 years and the consequent unavailability of experienced practitioners in home delivery. Following the report of the maternity and infant care scheme review group, the health boards chief executive officers established an expert group to consider the approaches to home births suggested by the review group and to make recommendations.
The expert group recommended the following three pilot projects which were subsequently established and have been funded by the Department: a community midwifery service, to be conducted in Cork by the Southern Health Board; a hospital outreach approach to be conducted by the Western Health Board and based at the University College Hospital, Galway and; a DOMINO, domiciliary care in and out of hospital, outreach project, based at the National Maternity Hospital, Holles Street. Following evaluation of the projects the policy, procedures and protocols necessary for domiciliary births will be developed.