Northampton General Hospital antenatal group nominated for national awards.
An antenatal group for women and their partners who need extra support with their experience of pregnancy and childbirth has been shortlisted for two national awards.
The Chit Chat group was established by Northampton General Hospital’s midwives as a way of tailoring antenatal education, parenting advice and peer support to women with additional needs, including learning disabilities or anxiety.
Now the group has been shortlisted in the Nursing Times Awards - which celebrates excellence in nursing and midwifery throughout the UK - in the Learning Disabilities Nursing category and the Enhancing Patient Dignity category.
Named midwife for obstetrics and gynaecology Emma Fathers said: “We felt it was important to set up the group for families who may have additional needs.
“The idea is to provide help and support with individualised, accessible care so that everyone who uses our service receives the best maternity care possible.”
“We’ve had some lovely comments about how much more confident the group has made them, about how lovely it is to meet people in similar situations, how nice it is to make friends.
“The group is challenging to run, it’s time out of a very busy working week, but for us if we have just one comment from a woman about the group making her feel more confident about being a mother – it’s all worthwhile.”
The winners will be announced on Thursday June 30.