Hospitals may refuse tests to home-birth mothers

MATERNITY hospitals in the south may refuse to carry out blood tests and ultrasound scans on pregnant women who are cared for by independent midwives.

A spokeswoman for the Southern Health Board (SHB) said discussions were underway among consultants at the Erinville Hospital and St Finbarr’s Hospital in Cork city with a view to following the lead set by Dublin’s maternity hospitals. If the policy change is implemented, Tralee General Hospital in Kerry will also follow suit.

A spokeswoman for the SHB said it would be “a medical decision”.