Maternal Mortality: Ethnic Groups

Department of Health and Social Care written question – answered at on 25 April 2019.

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Photo of Anneliese Dodds Anneliese Dodds Shadow Minister (Treasury)

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce maternal mortality among BAME women.

Photo of Anneliese Dodds Anneliese Dodds Shadow Minister (Treasury)

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason maternal mortality rates are higher among BAME women.

Photo of Jackie Doyle-Price Jackie Doyle-Price The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Health and Social Care

The higher rates of maternal mortality experienced by black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) women is a complex and serious issue. The Department has commissioned the Policy Research Unit in Maternal and Neonatal Health and Care at Oxford University to undertake a research project in 2019-20 to investigate the factors associated with excess perinatal and maternal mortality. The Department will use findings from research to inform future maternity policies.

Current plans to reduce inequalities are set out in the NHS Long Term Plan, we aim to tackle maternal mortality inequality through the introduction of an enhanced continuity of carer model. By 2024, 75% of women from BAME communities and other vulnerable women will receive continuity of care from their midwife. This will also help reduce pre-term births, hospital admissions, and the need for intervention during labour.

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