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Working with you to transform Acute Maternity Services

We welcome the decision of the Permanent Secretary to approve the recommendation of the Northern Health and Social Care Trust Board that all hospital births should take place at Antrim Area Hospital.

Operationally, this will come into effect from 17 July 2023 and preparations are now underway to implement that decision.

We strongly believe this is the best outcome for women and babies in our care.

It will allow us to continue providing the highest standard of inpatient maternity care and births at one, dedicated site, with a safer, more sustainable staffing model.

Any women who are due to give birth at Causeway Hospital will be contacted directly by the Trust. We have also set up a helpline to answer any queries from women who are due to give birth at Causeway.

We recognise this has also been an uncertain time for our very dedicated team of maternity staff at Causeway Hospital and we will be supporting them through this period of transition.

Causeway Hospital is a key part of the Trust’s acute hospital network and we remain committed to maintaining acute services and an Emergency Department at the site.

We recognise that the hospital and its staff play a vital role in serving the local community, and we want to enhance rather than diminish that role.

Causeway Hospital will retain its high quality antenatal and postnatal care which we recognise are critical local services for women.

We will also be enhancing these services so that pregnant women will have access to complex antenatal care and clinics at Causeway Hospital.

Background to the decision

A 14-week public consultation seeking views on the transformation of acute maternity services within the Northern Trust area was carried out between November 2022 and March 2023.

Following the consultation, at its public meeting in March 2023, the Board of the Northern Trust approved a recommendation that all hospital births should take place at Antrim Area Hospital.

Clinicians had advised that the provision of maternity services at Causeway Hospital was unsustainable due to falling birth rates, workforce challenges, and the absence of a neonatal unit.

Challenges around sufficient staff cover have become increasingly acute with clinicians expressing their concerns around the fragility of the service and vulnerability of the model.

One of the options included in the public consultation suggested that, while all consultant-led hospital births would be transferred to Antrim Area Hospital, a freestanding midwifery-led unit could also be established at Causeway Hospital. This option will be revisited once the outcome of the Department of Health-led review of midwifery services in Northern Ireland is known.

More information is available in our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Department of Health Media Release (published 8 June 2023)

Consultation Documents

The thematic analysis of all the consultation feedback received and Trust responses are set out in the Consultation Feedback Report.

Consultation Feedback Report

The documents below provide detailed information on our proposals for Maternity Services. The consultation document explains why we need to transform our Acute Maternity Services and describes two options for future services.

Consultation Document
Easy Read Consultation Document

The ‘Considering our Options’ paper describes in more detail why maternity services need to change. This paper also includes available information and evidence that has supported the development of a model of care and an analysis of possible options for future services.

Considering The Options Paper

In keeping with the commitments in our Equality Scheme we have carried out an Equality Impact Assessment of this proposal.

Equality Impact Assessment

As required under the Rural Needs Act (NI) 2016 we have carried out a Rural Needs Impact Assessment.

Rural Needs Impact Assessment

Alternative Formats

If you have any queries about the consultation documents, and their availability in alternative formats (including Braille, disk, audio and minority languages) then please contact the Equality Unit on equality.unit@northerntrust.hscni.net or telephone 028 2766 1377.

English: This document can be made available in minority ethnic languages, on request, to meet the needs of those not fluent in English.

Polish: Aby wyjść naprzeciw potrzebom osób, które nie mówią biegle po angielsku, ten Plan Działania może być udostępniony w językach mniejszości etnicznych na życzenie.

Lithuanian: Šis veiksmų Planas pareikalavus gali būti pateiktas tautiniu mažumu kalbomis, kad atitiktų sklandžiai nemokančių anglų kalbos poreikius.

Portuguese: O Plano de Ação está disponível, à pedido, em outras línguas, para atender às necessidades das pessoas que não são fluentes na língua Inglesa.

Tetum: Aksaun Planu ida né,se bele fo ou halo iha liafuan etnika minoria sira nian, nebe bele husu, para bele ajuda ba ema sira nebe la hatene koalia lian Inglés.

Latvian: Šis darbības plāns var būt pieejams mazākumtautību valodās pēc pieprasījuma, lai palīdzētu tiem, kam ir nepietiekamas angļu valodas zināšanas.

Russian: Сейчас план проводимой работы может быть доступен так же на языках этнических меньшинств, по просьбе тех, кто не владеет свободно английским языком.

Czech: ‘Aby byly uspokojeny potřeby těch, kteří nemluví plynule anglicky, je možné tento návrh Akčního plánu na požádání poskytnout v jazycích etnických menšin.’

Slovak: Tento Akčný Plán môže byť na požiadanie dostupný v jazykoch národnostných menšín z dôvodu zabezpečenia potrieb tých, ktorí nie sú spôsobilí mu porozumieť v angličtine.

Chinese- (Cantonese):這行動計劃草案將會根據需求被翻譯成各種小數族裔語言去迎合那些英語不流利的人士的需要。