NHS trust withdraws ‘dangerous’ advice to women on how to achieve a ‘normal birth’

An NHS trust has been criticised for advising pregnant women to stay at home for as long as possible during labour to increase the chances of a “normal birth”. University Hospitals Bristol NHS Trust also suggested mothers should avoid having epidurals or inductions and should try to have a home birth.

The advice has been described as “shocking” by experts, who said the guidance was contrary to evidence and could be “dangerous” for mothers and babies. Others criticised the language used by the trust which suggested women who needed medical help were somehow “abnormal”.

Earlier this month, the Bristol trust paid out £5.8m in compensation to the family of a six-year-old boy after he was left brain damaged at birth following complications during labour.

After being contacted by The Independent, the trust deleted the childbirth advice from its website and accepted it was “outdated”.

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Source: The Independent, 13 February 2020