ANGRY midwives have warned mothers and babies will die if night-time consultant cover is removed from a Cumbrian hospital.

Midwives from West Cumberland Hospital have hit out at plans to send complex births from Whitehaven to Carlisle's Cumberland Infirmary during the evening.

In a damning letter to Stephen Eames, chief executive of North Cumbria University Hospital NHS Trust, the midwives said birth complications "will not fit into any allocated time slots with medical care that you decide to give us.

"Transferring ladies in labour with complications will be catastrophic. How do we treat ladies who need urgent delivery such as a crash caesarean, shoulder dystocia and haemorrhaging?

"These ladies need urgent intervention – not an ambulance transfer to CIC with a bed to bed transfer time of one hour and 40 minutes.''

Many Millom women travel to the Whitehaven hospital and believe it is a vital service for the area.

One Millom mother, Sophie Swift, gave birth to her two children at the hospital and said the care she received was second to none.

She said: "I have had both my children up at Whitehaven Hospital and I cannot thank them enough.

"My first child was a natural birth but I ended up in emergency surgery afterwards and required blood transfusions and my lad ended up in special care.

"They provided high quality care and support for both me and my first child."

The government's Success Regime - which is heading a major review of services across North and West Cumbria - has put forward the plans but is now working to consider all possible alternatives and will hold a full public consultation in September.

A spokesperson said: “The Success Regime is currently looking at several options in respect to maternity services and we welcome the value and input of staff in helping shape which options are right for our services and the families of north, west and east Cumbria."

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