A former NHS investigator turned whistleblower has called for a public inquiry into maternity services, claiming it is the only way bereaved families will get the accountability they deserve.
Amanda Ford said she left her job in 2020 after her concerns about Yeovil District Hospital's maternity services were ignored. She claimed a "healthy baby died" due to the hospital's appalling conditions.
Dr Melanie Iles, chief medical officer for Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, said teams have done a huge amount of work to improve maternity services, but have "more work to do".
Yeovil District is one of 12 NHS trusts whose maternity and neonatal care has been under investigation by Baroness Valerie Amos.
Speaking about the national review, Ford said she was "really disappointed to see that a public inquiry is not one of those recommendations, when you consider the harm and the system failure at every level".
In her review, Baroness Amos included eight recommendations on how the maternity and neonatal system can be redesigned to deliver fundamental change.
They included the creation of a "statutory Maternity and Neonatal Commissioner" to oversee change, and for the system, including the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS trusts, to "take action to listen to the voices of women, birthing people and families".
The review found Somerset NHS Foundation Trust's Yeovil District Hospital maternity service is inconsistent, poorly coordinated, slow to respond and too often dismissive...
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