MBRRACE-UK’s State of the Nation report, published yesterday, looked at perinatal deaths of babies born in the UK in 2023. This includes babies that died after 24 weeks’ gestation, stillbirths, and babies that died within 28 days of life. The figures do not include terminations.
At Baby Lifeline we are committed to making care safer and better for every pregnant woman, birthing person and newborn baby, and our thoughts are with the families of the babies represented in this report.
The report found:
- The extended perinatal mortality rate decreased in 2023 when compared with 2022, and stillbirth rates decreased across all four devolved nations.
- Fewer newborns died in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, but neonatal mortality rates increased for the very smallest babies.
- Despite improvements, inequalities in perinatal mortality rates by deprivation and ethnicity remain:
- For the third year running, rates increased for babies born in the most deprived areas
- Black and Asian babies were still more likely to die than White babies
- The most common causes of stillbirth and neonatal death have not changed.
The report recommends targeted interventions to address disparities by socioeconomic status, ethnicity, and gestational age, including:
- Ensuring neonatal intensive care resources reflect need
- Supporting external review of stillbirths and neonatal deaths to identify learning
- Improvement of preterm outcomes using the BAPM Perinatal Optimisation Pathway
- Targeted action to reduce health inequalities.
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.