Dedicated emergency phone lines have been installed at hospital obstetric units across Greater Manchester so 999 call handlers can warn doctors and midwives of critically-ill women on their way in. The potentially life-saving new system works in a similar way to how A&E departments operate in an emergency case.
Emergency phone lines there are used to pre-alert the hospital that a patient is on the way in. North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) announced today the need for a similar process to ensure maternity staff are prepared for the arrival of an ambulance to a maternity unit with a pregnancy-related emergency had been identified.
As a result, a dedicated emergency phone line has been installed in every obstetric unit across the North West.
