Maternity services at Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust have been rated highly by local families in the 2021 National Maternity Survey.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) led survey asked people about their experience of antenatal care, care during labour and birth and postnatal care. Across the country, responses were received from more than 23,000 people who gave birth in February 2021 in services run by 122 NHS trusts.
180 people who were cared for by Torbay and South Devon midwives gave their feedback on maternity services provided. This was a 61% response rate, which was higher than the national average.
Feedback from local families was very positive overall, with choices for location of birth, mental health awareness and follow-up care and advice highlighted in particular as great examples of care.
However, there were also some areas of improvement identified for which local teams are developing an action plan, which include reviewing visiting times introduced in response to the pandemic and providing more opportunities to ask questions.
Jo Bassett, Head of Midwifery at Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We are delighted to hear the views of the families who use our services and feel that this feedback reflects the hard work and dedication of our teams to provide safe, high quality care.
“I am also incredibly proud of the team and their work during the pandemic, which has meant we have had to adapt very quickly in order to deliver our services while keeping everyone as safe as possible.
“We will also use these results to continue to make improvements and ensure our service continues to meet the needs of families in Torbay and South Devon.”
The CQC has published the results in full on their website: www.cqc.org.uk.
