A baby scan service has been ordered to improve after a watchdog raised concerns over how it ‘manages risks to women and their babies’. Babascans, in Rochdale, offers a variety of scans - including early pregnancy and gender/sexing - ‘for bonding purposes, reassurance and peace of mind throughout pregnancy’.
A recent inspection by the CQC found that staff ‘treated women with compassion and kindness, took account of their individual needs, and helped them understand their conditions’. They also provided emotional support to women, families and carers.
But officials have ordered the Reed House clinic to improve after finding it 'did not always assess risks to women and act on them'. A new inspection report reads: “We were not assured that the service had appropriate arrangements in place to assess and manage risks to women and their babies.
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“Women were not asked to bring their NHS pregnancy notes with them to the scan to check how many weeks pregnant they were and when they last received an ultrasound scan to allow them to make informed decision about whether to receive additional non-clinical exposure to ultrasound. “
The Hunters Lane centre's records showed when a woman had last received a scan there. But they were not asked to complete a pre-scan questionnaire about their pregnancy history - for example, previous miscarriages, stillbirths or abnormalities.
And while scans are only available to over-18s, women were not asked to bring proof of identity or age with them - although a date of birth was asked for at booking and on the consent form. Inspectors were also ‘not assured that all staff knew what to do in the event of a medical emergency’.
