Families have been advised that the Ockenden Review into maternity malpractice at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust will issue its final report on 22nd March.
Donna Ockenden’s Interim Report in December 2020 made clear the scale and seriousness of maternity malpractice at both Shropshire’s hospitals and that over 1,600 families may have been affected. Families from across Shropshire have come forward to share their experiences with the Review.
Since becoming an MP in 2015, Lucy has raised this issue with the Hospital Trust and has supported Telford constituents to access legal advice, raising their cases and working with the then Secretary of State for Health, Rt. Hon. Jeremy Hunt MP to bring forward an inquiry. Since becoming a member of Parliament's Health and Social Care Select Committee, chaired by Rt. Hon. Jeremy Hunt MP, maternity care and medical negligence has been firmly on the agenda; Lucy recently arranged for a Shropshire family to give evidence to the Select Committee on its inquiry into medical negligence and NHS litigation reform.
There is also a corresponding Police investigation seeking to establish whether criminal negligence took place.
You can read more about Lucy’s record of action on this issue here.
Lucy Allan MP said:
“I am grateful to every family that campaigned to get us to this point and I am glad we now have a date for the release of the final report. I know it will make for incredibly difficult reading. I hope it will provide answers and be of some comfort to those families affected by loss, permanent injury and trauma. The inquiry is a crucial part of the process to deliver justice to victims. All too often women were not listened to, they were told their case was a one off, or that they were being difficult. The previous senior management were still denying the existence of a problem as recently as 2018, even claiming that it was media scaremongering. It appears that a dysfunctional culture and institutional denial led to terrible tragedies and birth trauma for many hundreds of women. Many families have gone unheard for so long and this inquiry gives them a voice. It is crucial that families remain the focus and are front and centre in efforts to right wrongs and rebuild trust."
