Focus finally put on the mother - Overhaul of maternity services

IT seems extraordinary that this is the first time that Ireland will have a national maternity system that is actually focused on the mother.

It is not before time that women are to be offered as natural a birth as possible, in a safe environment, under the new National Maternity Strategy.

According to the Department of Health, this new approach is a fundamental overhaul of services which aims to improve safety and quality, as well as standardising care across all maternity units. The strategy was developed in response to a number of baby deaths at Portlaoise Hospital, and the death of Savita Halappanavar at University Hospital Galway.