Ayrshire has the lowest stillbirth rate in the UK, new figures show
dailyrecord.co.ukNew figures have revealed that Ayrshire and Arran has the lowest rate of stillbirth in the UK.The MBRRACE-UK perinatal mortality surveillance report also highlighted the health board as having the second-lowest rate of neonatal deaths and the lowest rate of extended perinatal mortality.MBRRACE-UK is the collaboration appointed by the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership to run the national Maternal, Newborn and Infant clinical Outcome Review Programme which monitors and investigates the causes of maternal deaths, stillbirths and infant deaths.For 2022, the latest figures published, Ayrshire and Arran's rate of stillbirth was 2.64 per 1,000 births - the lowest in the UK and down from 4.06 in 2017.Only Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust (0.78 per 1,000 births) had a lower rate of neonatal mortality than Ayrshire and Arran (0.83).Since 2017, the rate of neonatal mortality has more than halved - down from 2.3.A neonatal death is defined as a liveborn baby, born at 20 weeks or later, who died before 28 completed days after birth.The extended perinatal mortality rate in Ayrshire and Arran was 3.44 per 1,000 births - the lowest in the UK and down from 6.34 in 2017.Extended perinatal deaths include stillbirths and neonatal deaths.Midwifery director and women and children’s associate nurse director Attica Wheeler said: “NHS Ayrshire and Arran actively report into the MBRRACE surveillance annually.
We have an extensive portfolio of ongoing work linked to patient safety for women and children’s services that incorporate the recommendations from national reports such as MBRRACE into our annual training and development programme for staff.“Over the past 10 years NHS Ayrshire and Arran has contributed and worked to reduce
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