Yet another report has highlighted the glaring disparities Black women face compared to white women in pregnancy and birth.
The Women and Equalities Committee published the report on April 18 to flag the “appalling” disparity in maternal deaths – and to call for more to be done to change the tide for future generations.
Committee chair Caroline Nokes, who is a Conservative MP for Romsey and Southampton North, described the disparities with deaths among Black women as “shocking”.
She said while the “tireless work of campaigners” has ensured more attention has been paid to this in recent years “improvements are not happening quickly enough”.
Here are some of the findings from the new report – as well as details of what MPs think needs to happen next to make a long-lasting change.
1. Black women are far more likely to die in childbirth than white women
The UK has one of the lowest maternal mortality ratios in the world. Yet there are “glaring and persistent disparities in outcomes for women depending on their ethnicity,” stated the report.
It pointed to findings that maternal mortality for Black women is currently almost four times higher than for white women. Shockingly, over the 2000-2002 period, Black African women were almost seven times as likely to die than white women.
Significant disparities also exist for women of Asian and mixed ethnicity, as well as women living in the most deprived areas.
2. The role of racism has been underestimated
The report acknowledged that the causes of the disparity in maternal deaths “are multiple, complex and still not fully understood”.
“Fixating on any one cause risks over-simplifying the problem and placing blame on the very women who are most at risk,” the committee said.
But while acknowledging there are many causes, the report did flag that the role of racism in the disparity in maternal deaths may have been “underestimated” by the government and NHS.
The Women and Equalities Committee said a target is now needed for eliminating this disparity.
3. Too many Black women have experienced treatment ‘that falls short of acceptable standards’
One of the report’s conclusions was that “too many Black women have experienced treatment that falls short of acceptable standards”.
It flagged data that suggested improvements in care may have made a difference to the outcome of 38% of women who died.
Cardiac disease remains the largest single cause of indirect maternal deaths, followed by neurological causes (epilepsy and stroke).
Thrombosis and thromboembolism (deep vein thrombosis) remains the leading cause of direct maternal death during or up to six weeks after the end of pregnancy.
The report highlighted that the maternity workforce must be properly equipped to understand and recognise the significant disparities that exist, and to use that knowledge to deliver personalised, effective and respectful care. It also needs to be fully staffed and properly funded.
MPs called on the government to commit to increasing the annual budget for maternity services to £200-350 million from the next financial year.
The government has put forward “necessary but insufficient” solutions to tackle the problem of the disparity in maternal deaths, the committee added.
5. These disparities have been known about for 20 years but ‘improvements are not happening quickly enough’
While improvements to maternity services will undoubtedly help, the conclusion was that there’s no single ‘quick-fix solution’ to these disparities.
However it’s hoped the report will prompt an effective and coherent cross-government strategy so progress can be made.
MPs called for a cross-government target and strategy, led by the Department of Health and Social Care, for eliminating maternal health disparities, which it said the Maternity Disparities Taskforce should consult on.
The report highlighted that, at the time of writing, the taskforce hadn’t met for nine months.
MP Caroline Nokes said while the “tireless work of campaigners” has ensured more attention has been paid to this in recent years “improvements are not happening quickly enough”.
“Government must be more ambitious and set a national target to end disparities. It is frankly shameful that we have known about these disparities for at least 20 years. It cannot take another 20 to resolve,” she said.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “While the NHS is already one of the safest places to give birth in the world, we are absolutely clear that we must ensure maternity care is of the same high standard, regardless of race.
“We’ve invested £165 million since 2021 to grow the maternity workforce and are promoting careers in midwifery with an extra 3,650 training places per year, while every local NHS maternity system has a plan in place to tackle disparities on a local level.
“The Maternity Disparities Taskforce – a collective of mothers, clinicians and key organisations – is being chaired today by Minister Maria Caulfield to focus on how we can eradicate disparities and improve maternity outcomes for all mothers.”