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Maternity unit death probe
Mark Prigg, Science Correspondent14.04.08
Three women have died at a maternity unit where 10 new mothers lost their lives.
Northwick Park Hospital has ordered an inquiry after the women died within 10 months of one another.
In the latest case an Afghan teacher from Wembley, Zahra Ghaznavi, 28, suffered a serious tear during labour and died on 20 March. Family friend Wahid Hamraz said: "She should not have died, not with all the medical resources they have got." The trust was investigated by health watchdogs two years ago after its maternal death rate soared to six times the average.
Maternity standards were criticised but the hospital was lifted out of special measures after hiring extra staff and pumping in £19 million extra cash. Chief executive Fiona Wise has announced a new review of services but insisted there was no evidence care had been compromised.
Reader views (1)
Making complaints will only get harder, speak out if you work for the NHS and you risk being hounded out of your job or your career curtailed, be a patient and flag up something and the response will be stalling complaint systems all the way to well paid Whitehall hot air merchants, achieving nothing, rather than a strike off or perhaps the cold shoulder.However now the independent part of the Health Care Commission is going to be disbanded after only 4 years....the only hope individuals or groups can have is the press, however newspapers can be silenced easily by the various expensive threats from powerful groups who don't give a jot about money draining, community ruining dangerous practice.Most NHS stuff is brilliant, however why is the government such an out of touch cretin in terms of patient/and medical complaint.Women need to feel safe about giving birth, I know I did, St Thomas' was fantastic for my family.
- Maryfoordbrown, Suffolk Coastal
