MBRRACE have today published their State of the Nation report which looked at perinatal deaths of babies born in the UK in 2022. The report found:
- The stillbirth rate has decreased since 2022, but there has been an increase in neonatal mortality for the very smallest babies
- Despite improvements, inequalities in perinatal mortality rates by deprivation and ethnicity remain:
- Babies of Black ethnicity are still more than twice as likely to be stillborn than babies of White ethnicity
- Babies of both Asian and Black ethnicity continue to have much higher rates of neonatal mortality than babies of White ethnicity
- The most common causes of stillbirth and neonatal death have not changed.
MBRRACE have called on the UK government, Royal Colleges and Commissioners to develop and implement targeted action to support the reduction of direct and indirect health inequalities. They have also asked for increased neonatal intensive care capacity, rigorous reviews of stillbirths and neonatal deaths, and for appropriate pathways to be adopted for the improvement of preterm outcomes.
Achieving equity and equality in maternity and neonatal care
Baby Lifeline is committed to making care safer and better for every pregnant woman, birthing person and newborn baby. We have previously described gaps in training for healthcare professionals relating to cultural sensitivity, language needs, and social considerations, and called for improvements in these areas.
Equity and inequalities is discussed in many of our training courses, including recognising clinical signs in women, birthing people and babies with Black and Brown skin, and providing culturally sensitive care.