Concern over 'hungry' pregnant Caithness women at Raigmore Hospital patient lodge
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Concern has been expressed about "hungry" pregnant Caithness women being stranded at the Kyle Court patient lodge at Raigmore Hospital while waiting to have their babies.
Bill Fernie, chairman of Caithness Health Action Team (Chat), said: "It is just intolerable, particularly for pregnant woman not being fed properly."
The issue emerged on the action group's Facebook page when Chat secretary Maria Aitken made a post under the banner "Stranded, lonely, hungry and no choice in the matter".
Pointing out that some heavily pregnant Caithness women were being made to stay in Kyle Court for long periods, Mrs Aitken wrote: "These mothers are over 100 miles away from their supportive partners and their families, which impacts on loneliness and feelings of isolation, in an environment that is often strange and frightening for them."
She said the women were not allowed to eat in the Raigmore wards and were having to pay to eat in the hospital canteen, that is only open Monday to Friday, or expected to walk a good distance to the nearest shop to buy food for reheating at Kyle Court.
Mr Fernie pointed out that a couple of months ago Chat had met with NHS Highland's then chief executive Iain Stewart, who left the post in January to take up a new role with NHS Orkney.
"We brought up a number of issues but have not heard back," Mr Fernie said. "Now that he has gone we are left wondering what is going on.
"At the end of the day, it is crucial that pregnant women are fed properly. The whole thing needs seriously looked at."
Referring to some of the Facebook comments, Mr Fernie said: "It does not seem to be the same thing in other areas. There appears to be no equity across the health boards."
He added that he felt the problem stemmed from a general lack of money in the NHS Highland budget with cutbacks having an obvious impact.
"We will have to get back in touch with MSPs and health ministers since the health board has not got back to us," he said.
The local campaigners would like every pregnant Caithness mother staying in Kyle Court to have at least one nutritional meal every day in the hospital ward with other mothers. It is felt that this would also help alleviate the loneliness and social isolation that could have an impact on mental health and wellbeing of both mother and baby.
Members of Chat also feel that the maternity model imposed on the community has not taken account of the economic impact it is having on families.
The action group already provides lay-flat car seats for babies having to make the journey from Inverness and 100-mile helper kits for mothers travelling to Raigmore in an emergency.
Mrs Aitken raised the question: "Does Chat now have to provide food hampers for our mothers who are struggling for food in Kyle Court?"
The Facebook post has generated more than 50 comments with one local young mum saying that she is already "dreading" going down to Raigmore at what should be an exciting time, while another told how her partner had to sleep in the car as he was not booked into Kyle Court.
For one young mum who had to spend three weeks in accommodation at the Inverness hospital, leaving her family at home, it was one of her "loneliest times".
Meanwhile, another mum from Caithness who had her premature baby in Edinburgh told how the staff there went "above and beyond" to help and she was treated as a patient for the whole hospital stay, while her husband was also given good accommodation.
The group is urging anyone affected by these issues to get in touch with them by private message on Facebook or by emailing info@caithnesshealth.com
A spokesman for NHS Highland said: "NHS Highland works closely with pregnant women in both patient lodges to ensure their stay is as comfortable as possible. Patients have full access of the refurbished kitchen facilities in both patient lodges and access to the Raigmore canteen.
"We would encourage any families who have concerns to get in touch with us to discuss their case in detail."
