Dr Bill Kirkup CBE

In their latest podcast Niall and Roy speak with maternity review Chair, Dr Bill Kirkup following his resignation as an expert advisor to the latest government review of childbirth headed by Lady Amos.

His key reason for quitting was around natural childbirth with Dr Kirkup opposing attempts as he saw it to shut down debate on the issue. But in the podcast he is adamant that while debating the place of so called natural childbirth is essential, it is not the only issue. Instead he focuses on the current training system which sets professionals off to work for different objectives which are in opposition to each other. And that he insists that is never going to produce good, safe practice. 

And he backs those who have argued there have been adverse consequences of midwives no longer needing to be trained first as nurses. He says that also means they are often going into midwifery straight from school with no experience of anything outside of the educational system and no experience of the healthcare system. With the best will in the world he suggests it is probably not surprising that ‘some get ideas that are not helpful’

He is adamant that he does not wish to demonise or blame midwives but says we have inadvertently set up a system that produces people who are not necessarily well equipped. 

And he claims that until we have a conversation that says it’s no good telling people not to make mistakes, the system will not work. He wants to abolish the current adversarial compensation system and calls on professional regulators to concentrate less on pursuing those who make technical mistakes and more on those who conceal, deny and cover up when mistakes are made.

As for all the reviews – and there are more underway now – Dr Kirkup laments the fact that maternity units have had to cope with around 900 recommendations, which he says makes the whole process unfeasible and he himself pleads guilty to contributing to this, admitting that there were ‘far too many recommendations’ in his Morecambe Bay report. 

As for the Amos review, he highlights two vital proposals for reform – in the areas of compensation and clinical education.