§ Mrs. WiseTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he issues any guidance about(a) the number of midwives and (b) the number of other staff required for the adequate staffing of an ante-natal clinic.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyNo. This is a matter for local management. Staffing levels are likely to vary depending upon the type of service that is provided locally and the catchment areas which clinics serve.
§ Mrs. WiseTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what research has been done on the use of epidural anaesthesia in childbirth, other than caesarean deliveries, relating to(a) maternal satisfaction, (b) percentage requiring forceps deliveries, (c) effect on babies' sucking ability and (d) any other matters.
§ Mr. DorrellThe Department has provided core funding to the national perinatal epidemiology unit in Oxford since 1978. Since its inception, the unit has been conducting a systematic assessment of evidence about the effectiveness and safety of perinatal care. This has involved conducting a systematic review of controlled trials in overviews (meta-analyses) which culminated in the publication in 1989 of "Effective Care in Pregnancy and Childbirth" (Oxford University Press) part of which reviews the evidence relating to epidural anaesthesia, a copy is available in the Library.
In addition, the Department has provided part-funding to a confidential enquiry into pain relief in labour undertaken by the National Birthday Trust in June 1990 and has also funded research on the postpartum consequences of epidural anaesthesia as part of a programme of work on postnatal maternal health at the health care research centre, University of Birmingham.
We do not keep a central register of research funded by other agencies.
§ Mrs. WiseTo ask the Secretary of State for Health which research projects relating to ante-natal care have been funded by the Government in the last 10 years; and what information he has on other ante-natal research projects which have been undertaken in that period.
§ Mr. DorrellThe Department has funded numerous projects on antenatal care in the last decade. It has provided core funding to the national perinatal epidemiology unit in Oxford since 1978. The unit undertakes a wide programme of research including surveys and other studies using observational data, randomised controlled trials and syntheses of the results of research evaluating the effects of care. The unit has492W produced nearly 500 publications, of which probably more than half relate to care during pregnancy. The Department has also funded a midwifery research initiative based at the unit since February 1988.
The Department does not keep a central register of research on specific topics funded by other Government Departments or their agents.
§ Mrs. WiseTo ask the Secretary of State for Health whether any health authority now maintains a flying squad for use in connection with home confinements.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyAll health authorities must ensure that they have satisfactory arrangements for an immediate response to any obstetric emergency occurring outside hospital.