Letters: Midwives and labour pains - The Guardian 26th February 2008

I am a student midwife, training at Queen Mary's hospital in Sidcup, Kent. Despite the fact that our own local birth rate has increased to more than 3,000 a year and that neighbouring trusts are struggling to cope with their own local populations, the government intends to close our unit (4,000 more midwives for NHS after criticism of poor maternity care, February 25). The aim is to streamline services across the four London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich and Lewisham. I am happy that the government recognises the need for 4,000 new midwives, but I am very sad that they are in complete denial of the fact that each borough requires its own maternity unit. Women are already forced to wait at home, or labour alone for long periods because of lack of staff and services. In addition, women in Bexley and their families will have to travel miles in order to have access to maternity services in the future.

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