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The national maternity investigation

Browne Jacobson's specialist nationwide maternity team provides comprehensive support to help NHS trusts participating in the Government's national investigation into maternity and neonatal services.

The national review represents a pivotal intervention aimed at driving urgent improvements in care.

Our team's expert legal support enables healthcare organisations to organise, deliver and evidence safe, equitable and compassionate maternity care. 

How can we support?

The announcement of the national review highlights the intense scrutiny maternity services remain under. It is likely that a range of participants will engage in this investigation – either as part of the following stages:

  • Stage 1: Where up to 10 of the most concerning maternity and neonatal units will be investigated.
  • Stage 2: A system-wide review of maternity and neonatal care, including a review of the inequalities that women from Black, Asian and deprived backgrounds face.

We can help support your organisation learn in a meaningful way to improve safety and achieve improved outcomes.

Get in touch

Maternity investigation support options

We can prepare you for regulatory scrutiny by the CQC (whether through an inspection or to help you meet fundamental standards).

We also assist when things don’t go to plan, advising and representing organisations in respect of regulatory and criminal investigations, enforcement action and prosecutions. We have successfully challenged CQC draft reports, warning notices, and the imposition of registration conditions.

Our team can also offer professional regulatory referrals and investigatory processes (both internal and external).

Regulatory scrutiny

We are involved in all current major inquiries involving the healthcare sector, including the Covid-19 Inquiry, the Thirlwall Inquiry, the Lampard Inquiry, the Fuller Independent Inquiry and the Nottingham Inquiry.

We routinely advise on the initiation of patient safety reviews and investigations, as well governance-focused reviews to drive organisational improvement.

Strategic briefings for Trust Boards and senior leaders on risk trends, maternity claim data, and improving legal readiness, informed by the learnings from previous inquiries (etc.) on the role that Boards and leaders have on culture, driving better outcomes and the importance of “curiosity".

Board engagement and effectiveness

We will take a deep dive into complaints and/or maternity incidents to help maternity services resolve concerns and disputes fairly, identify clinical themes and areas for improvement on key issues such as those associated with the Ockenden report. These can form the basis of reports to the Board and training for staff. 

Thematic reviews

We'll conduct SI/PSIRF/MNSI action plans and complaint responses and external report recommendations, for example:

  • CQC/MIS declaration;
  • assurance reviews;
  • maternity transformation plans;
  • healthcare commission, and;
  • CCG review. 
Audits

We conduct reviews of internal governance processes and structures for the reporting, investigation, learning and implementation of maternity wide changes.

Internal governance processes and structures

Creating an open and compassionate culture where staff feel able to speak up will help employers to identify problematic practice before significant issues arise.

We can work with you to embed a fair and learning culture, where staff are supported to raise concerns about safety through ward to Board training.

Our experts can support with the following:

  • reviewing policies and procedures; 
  • thematic analysis and equality, and;
  • health impact assessments (including modular training for staff conducting these).

Our data experts can support the safe and effective development and deployment of technological solutions designed to support measures to tackle inequalities.

Equalities and health inequalities

Specialist secondment support

Whilst this can offer in person, remote or hybrid support in times of need, this can also include support with reviews of an organisations open book of claims, MNSI reporting processes and any appropriate triaging of litigation risk.

In-house programme

Legal mentoring and peer-to-peer support for lawyers and senior leaders.

Bespoke training

Covering areas that directly impact on maternity services including on Data Protection, Duty of Candour, consent and record keeping.

We also offer training at Board level focusing on the roles and responsibilities of the Board in ensuring scrutiny and oversight of safety in maternity, with a focus on practical examples of scrutiny and challenge.

We can identify areas for improvement to support early resolution of complaints and provide training to complaint teams on how to write complaint responses that are easy to read, understand and can avoid unnecessary escalation.

Gap analysis

We can conduct an analysis of your leadership, management and staffing roles in maternity workforce while managing mental health and wellbeing and sickness absence, alongside tackling poor performance with confidence.

Training opportunities and business improvement

We can prepare you for regulatory scrutiny by the CQC (whether through an inspection or to help you meet fundamental standards).

We also assist when things don’t go to plan, advising and representing organisations in respect of regulatory and criminal investigations, enforcement action and prosecutions. We have successfully challenged CQC draft reports, warning notices, and the imposition of registration conditions.

Our team can also offer professional regulatory referrals and investigatory processes (both internal and external).

Regulatory scrutiny

We are involved in all current major inquiries involving the healthcare sector, including the Covid-19 Inquiry, the Thirlwall Inquiry, the Lampard Inquiry, the Fuller Independent Inquiry and the Nottingham Inquiry.

We routinely advise on the initiation of patient safety reviews and investigations, as well governance-focused reviews to drive organisational improvement.

Strategic briefings for Trust Boards and senior leaders on risk trends, maternity claim data, and improving legal readiness, informed by the learnings from previous inquiries (etc.) on the role that Boards and leaders have on culture, driving better outcomes and the importance of “curiosity".

Board engagement and effectiveness

We will take a deep dive into complaints and/or maternity incidents to help maternity services resolve concerns and disputes fairly, identify clinical themes and areas for improvement on key issues such as those associated with the Ockenden report. These can form the basis of reports to the Board and training for staff. 

Thematic reviews

We'll conduct SI/PSIRF/MNSI action plans and complaint responses and external report recommendations, for example:

  • CQC/MIS declaration;
  • assurance reviews;
  • maternity transformation plans;
  • healthcare commission, and;
  • CCG review. 
Audits

We conduct reviews of internal governance processes and structures for the reporting, investigation, learning and implementation of maternity wide changes.

Internal governance processes and structures

Creating an open and compassionate culture where staff feel able to speak up will help employers to identify problematic practice before significant issues arise.

We can work with you to embed a fair and learning culture, where staff are supported to raise concerns about safety through ward to Board training.

Our experts can support with the following:

  • reviewing policies and procedures; 
  • thematic analysis and equality, and;
  • health impact assessments (including modular training for staff conducting these).

Our data experts can support the safe and effective development and deployment of technological solutions designed to support measures to tackle inequalities.

Equalities and health inequalities

Specialist secondment support

Whilst this can offer in person, remote or hybrid support in times of need, this can also include support with reviews of an organisations open book of claims, MNSI reporting processes and any appropriate triaging of litigation risk.

In-house programme

Legal mentoring and peer-to-peer support for lawyers and senior leaders.

Bespoke training

Covering areas that directly impact on maternity services including on Data Protection, Duty of Candour, consent and record keeping.

We also offer training at Board level focusing on the roles and responsibilities of the Board in ensuring scrutiny and oversight of safety in maternity, with a focus on practical examples of scrutiny and challenge.

We can identify areas for improvement to support early resolution of complaints and provide training to complaint teams on how to write complaint responses that are easy to read, understand and can avoid unnecessary escalation.

Gap analysis

We can conduct an analysis of your leadership, management and staffing roles in maternity workforce while managing mental health and wellbeing and sickness absence, alongside tackling poor performance with confidence.

Training opportunities and business improvement

Why Browne Jacobson?

Our maternity and neonatal expertise spans multiple disciplines, allowing us to deliver a fully integrated service that meets the evolving needs of healthcare organisations, including: 

  • Clinical negligence: We're known as experts in the field, working on the biggest maternity investigations and handle complex, high value and high-profile claims on behalf of NHS Trusts.
  • Public law: Sector leading public law team, with healthcare specialists who advise on the full range of public law issues that can arise from maternity incidents. Data and information law experts working as part of the public law team can also advise and provide training on all such issues and support with high volume disclosure. We also have extensive experience supporting organisations with high-profile reviews, investigations and public inquiries (both statutory and non-statutory).
  • Criminal compliance and regulatory: Award-winning regulatory team supporting healthcare organisations navigate CQC scrutiny, regulatory or criminal investigations and enforcement action. 
  • Inquest and advisory: Our inquest and advisory specialists advise and represent healthcare organisations and staff involved in sensitive and high-profile maternity inquests, providing practical, compassionate support with a strong understanding of reputational risk and evidencing meaningful organisational learning outcomes
  • Employment and workforce: Our employment specialists advise on complex HR issues arising from maternity incidents, including investigations, disciplinary matters and performance concerns, with a focus on minimising impact on staff and organisational wellbeing.

Our multi-disciplinary experts are also experienced in advising on consolidation of action plans and implementation of learning processes to drive meaningful improvement.

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