Kingston Hospital has been criticised by frustrated councillors for the length of time it has taken to meet its targets in improving the number of midwives.

Yesterday the Surrey Comet revealed on its front page that midwives had written an anonymous letter expressing serious concerns about continuing patient safety in the maternity ward due to understaffing, which the hospital emphatically denied.

On Thursday night, as the newspaper was being printed, councillors expressed their own opinions about staffing levels, unaware of the existence of the letter.

The hospital has increased the number of midwives it employs. At the moment there is one nurse for every 36 mothers, an improvement from 18 months ago, when the ratio was as high as one to 43.

But the Government has a nationally recognised standard of one midwife to 28 women, which the hospital has said it hoped to continue to move towards.

Councillor Mary Reid, one of the members of the health overview and scrutiny panel which has been asking its own questions about staffing levels, expressed her frustration at the news.

She told hospital bosses, including chief executive Kate Grimes: "When we spoke last time I remember there was particular concern about the number of midwives, permanent rather than agency.

"I’m quite shocked we are still saying we are hoping to reach that. I was told 18 months ago that was an absolute target you were aiming for."

But Lynne Smith, head of midwifery at the hospital, defended the hospital, denying the measure was an absolute target and saying the measure was crude as it didn’t take into account geography.

She said: “If you go to a place like Newham there would be women who have a much greater need.”

But Coun Reid said: "This is already 18 months along the line and this is going to be something I’m going to carry on talking about.

"We were fobbed off last time with a perfectly good presentation but it didn’t answer our question.

"Last year it was delayed and delayed and delayed.

"This panel is here to do exactly this kind of overview and scrutiny.

"To be honest to be put off like this for 18 months and hear you are just hoping to improve standards. I find that very worrying and disappointing."

But Ms Grimes said: "I think improving from one in 43 to one in 34 is something to be celebrated.

"There’s a clear plan to improve that but you need to look at a range of indicators when reviewing the quality including maternal deaths and what the woman think.

"I think our maternity service would reflect very well if you look at those kind of indicators."

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