Dedicated Pregnancy Sickness Service Shortlisted for National Award

A dedicated service at Birmingham Women’s Hospital treating women with a severe form of pregnancy sickness (Hyperemesis) has recently been shortlisted in the Health Service Journal Awards.

Hyperemesis can affect thousands of women during pregnancy, causing weight loss and dehydration. The Hyperemesis Day Centre at Birmingham Women’s Hospital is a dedicated innovative service for the management of this acute problem where women receive treatment as outpatients without having to be admitted.

Prior to the redesign of this service around 70% of women with nausea and vomiting in pregnancy were admitted as inpatients for at least 24 hours. The service has now been shortlisted in the Health Service Journal Value in Healthcare Awards in the Acute Service Redesign category.

Support and advice incorporates dietary and lifestyle advice and information about patient support groups. The first referral is from the general practitioner, the accident and emergency department, walk in centres or midwives. Once the patient is accepted, she has self-access and a contact telephone service. In this way, patients are empowered with the knowledge they need to manage their symptoms in the community and have the access to further specialised help if they should require it.

Patient outcomes have been very positive and patients surveyed felt they had been treated with sensitivity, received enough information from staff and were offered written information to take home. All patients reported that they would recommend the service and the only improvements suggested had a theme of a more comfortable environment such as a television or radio. Comments included ‘it is a God send’ ‘arguably the best department in the hospital’, ‘caring staff’, ‘supportive and helpful staff’, ‘swift, effective, friendly, informative, clean’ ‘treatment you need quick’, ‘treatment works’.

The unit has been visited by members of the Pregnancy Sickness Society, which is the UK patient support group. They are supportive of the service and the trust receives enquiries from patients and clinicians from all around the UK regarding our protocols and treatment. Patients have been referred to us through the Pregnancy Sickness Society and from patient recommendation who would not usually geographically be referred to our trust.