Montgomeryshire Liberal Democrats

WHY DO 17 BABIES DIE EVERY SINGLE DAY IN THE UK? - ÖPIK

Lembit Öpik, Liberal Democrat MP for Montgomeryshire, attended a special parliamentary reception last week to launch the Sands campaign: Why 17?

Sands, the stillbirth and neonatal death charity, is raising awareness of the fact that every hour and half in the UK a baby is stillborn or dies shortly after birth. That's 17 babies every day. There are strong indications that significant numbers of these 17 deaths could be avoided and babies' lives saved.

At the event, Mr Öpik was presented with Sands' new report, Saving Babies' Lives 2009 which, backed up by new research, highlights several problem areas that are contributing to this level of baby loss, the long-lasting impact of these deaths, and recommends changes that could save babies' lives.

Commenting on the report, he said:

"I was shocked to discover that there are 6,500 stillbirth and neonatal deaths every year in the UK, and that many families in my local constituency will have experienced the tragic loss of a baby in this way.

"The new Saving Babies' Lives Report clearly outlines the key issues, problem areas and recommendations for change, and I am fully committed to supporting Sands in their call for action now to make a difference so more lives can be saved in the future."

Ends/diwedd

Notes to editors:

To find out more about Sands Why17? campaign and the Saving Babies' Lives Report 2009 please go to www.uk-sands.org

Please find attached a photograph of Lembit at the campaign launch.

Key Information about Sands:

Sands, the stillbirth and neonatal death charity, was established by bereaved parents in 1978 and obtained charity status in 1981.

Sands core aims are to:

· Support anyone affected by the death of a baby;

· To work in partnership with health professionals to improve the quality of care and services offered to bereaved families; and

· To promote research and changes in practice that could help to reduce the loss of babies' lives

If you would like further information on this, a pdf copy of the Saving Babies' Lives Report,2009 or any other aspect of Why 17? please contact:

Katie Duff, Sands Communications Manager

Tel: 0845 6520 442 / 07748 645 223

Email: katie.duff@uk-sands.org

Lyn Peters, Sands press office

Tel: 01394 385865 / 07909 544496 email: lyn.peters@btinternet.com

Erica Stewart, Sands Head Office

Tel: 020 7436 7940

Email: erica.stewart@uk-sands.org

The facts today:

· 17 babies die every day in the UK (10 are stillbirths, 7 are neonatal deaths) totalling almost 6,500 baby deaths a year - the equivalent of 16 jumbo jets crashing every year.

· This is four times the number of people who die every year of MRSA (1,593 MRSA deaths in 2007, UK Statistics Authority).

· This is double the number of adults who lose their lives on Britain's roads every year (2007 - 2,940 people were killed on the roads, Department of Transport).

· Ten times more babies are stillborn than die of cot death every year in the UK.

· The stillbirth rate has remained almost unchanged for the past 10 years. (CEMACH)

Problems contributing to baby deaths:

· Under-resourced maternity and neonatal services:

· Maternity services in the UK are under considerable strain from lack of resources and funding and there is strong evidence to suggest that this is contributing to baby deaths. (The last official enquiry by CESDI, Confidential Enquiry into Stillbirths and Deaths in Infancy, found that nearly half of all unexplained stillbirths, might have been avoided with better antenatal care.)

· New evidence from a Sands survey of 270 bereaved parents found that almost half of parents (48%) did not feel that everything possible was done to save their baby's life, they felt rushed through their antenatal appointments (36%) and not completely confident about the way in which they were cared for in the lead up to their baby's death (49%).

· There is a severe shortage of neonatal nurses, with 1,700 posts needing to be filled and only 14 out of 50 intensive care units in the UK providing minimum standards of one-to-one care for sick and premature babies.

· Serious shortage of funding for research to understand and prevent stillbirths:

· Half of all stillborn babies die for no apparent reason - like a 'cot death in the womb'. The cause of these deaths is very poorly understood because research work is not being funded.

· There is potential to detect the babies that are at risk of stillbirth, and deliver them early. But if work like this is to succeed we need funding for further research and trials of interventions.

· There are pockets of excellent research work but much higher levels of funding are needed to enable researchers to do the work they believe could have a real impact on reducing deaths.

· Lack of understanding and awareness among both prospective parents and healthcare professionals of the extent and risk of stillbirth and neonatal death:

· Sands' new consumer survey of UK adults revealed that awareness of the level of stillbirth is low, with 75% being very surprised that the rate of stillbirth was as high as 300 babies dying every month.

· The survey also revealed that mums-to-be are not being made aware of the risks of stillbirth with 42% of mothers questioned not receiving any information on stillbirth from their midwife.

· Failure of current antenatal screening techniques to identify 'at-risk' babies;

· 50% of all stillbirths are of babies who die for apparently no reason, the majority in 'low-risk' pregnancies.