Following the publication today, 25 February, of the Welsh Maternity and Neonatal National Assurance Assessment, The Path to Safer Beginnings in Wales, Caroline Lee-Davey, Chief Executive of neonatal charity Bliss, commented:
“Bliss welcomes the publication of this independent assessment of maternity and neonatal care in Wales, which provides a thorough overview of current services and sets out clear recommendations to deliver positive change for babies and families.
“We know that receiving the right level of care in the right unit is essential for babies to have the best short- and long-term outcomes, including the best chance of survival for the smallest and sickest babies. It is therefore concerning to see the findings highlight fragmentation in coordination between neonatal units, particularly in South Wales where configuration of neonatal units is impacting the care and experience of babies and families. We strongly support the recommendation that the Joint Commissioning Committee make urgent progress in planning a neonatal service model to improve care for babies now and into the future.
“We are pleased to see recommendations in the report to address areas of neonatal care that Bliss has highlighted as being in need of improvement. In particular, we welcome the recognition that there is currently highly variable provision of allied health professional and psychology staffing in neonatal care, which echoes Bliss’ own 2025 findings. We support the recommendation that there needs to be a long-term workforce plan to deliver consistent provision of these essential roles in all neonatal services across Wales.
“We also welcome the focus on driving up the quality of care across perinatal services. While the importance of Family Integrated Care (FICare) is acknowledged – alongside recognition of the commendable efforts of neonatal staff to facilitate parental presence and involvement wherever possible – it is clear that many services lack the resources and infrastructure to support all parents to stay overnight with their baby, and it is vital that the importance of parent accommodation is included in the consideration of improvement to the neonatal estate.
“We urge all political parties across Wales to accept the report’s findings in full, to enable a clear cross-party consensus on implementing its recommendations over the coming years. This must include a commitment to provide the necessary resources to do so, to ensure that every baby born premature or sick in Wales has the best chance of survival and quality of life”.
