NHS workers who suffer a miscarriage will be given up to 10 days of paid leave to help them ‘cope with the trauma’

NHS workers who suffer a miscarriage before six months of pregnancy will be given paid leave as part of the new guidelines.

Women in healthcare who have a miscarriage in the first 24 weeks of pregnancy receive 10 days of paid leave. Employees whose partner has had a miscarriage get five days.

If a stillbirth occurs after six months of pregnancy, staff will continue to be eligible for maternity leave under the health service’s new policy.

The new National Policy Framework for Pregnancy and Infant Loss is designed to help workers cope with their grief in these heartbreaking circumstances.

Experts say the move sends a “powerful signal” that people affected by the loss of a baby “deserve understanding, compassion and the right to grieve.”

Employees and their partners will be entitled to additional leave to cope with their grief under NHS England’s new National Pregnancy and Baby Loss People Policy Framework, issued to hospitals on Wednesday.

MailOnline understands that there is no ‘cut-off’ period for being pregnant for a minimum period to qualify for the support and the policy will operate on a ‘trust’ basis.

It will also apply to couples having a child through surrogacy.

The new framework also calls for NHS trusts to provide staff with paid leave to attend appointments including medical examinations, scans and tests, as well as mental health interventions.

Those returning to work after a miscarriage are offered occupational health support, including a referral to a specialist they trust.

Dr. Navina Evans, head of human resources, training and education, said: ‘The loss of babies is an extremely traumatic experience that hundreds of NHS staff experience every year, and it is right that they are treated with the utmost care and compassion when they go through such a thing’ a disturbing situation. experience.

‘We know how important it is to get the right support for our staff in the first instance. That’s why, for the first time in healthcare, we’re offering paid leave, so parents can take the time to process this traumatic experience. paid time to attend appointments.”

Dr. Evans added that she hopes the formal guidelines will inspire other sectors to ‘adopt such supportive approaches to miscarriage in their own organisations’.

Kath Abrahams, director of baby loss charity Tommy’s, said: ‘Pregnancy loss can take a huge toll on women and birthing people, both physically and mentally. Their partners can also be deeply affected.

‘As the UK’s largest employer, the NHS is sending a strong message that employees going through this experience deserve understanding, compassion and the right to grieve – and that support is available no matter what your workplace looks like.’

Health Secretary Maria Caulfield added: ‘Our brilliant NHS staff care for us when we need it most and this new guidance is a positive step to ensure they are supported through the tragedy of losing a baby .

‘It means doctors, nurses and their partners are now entitled to additional leave to help cope with their grief, which is crucial for their long-term mental health and wellbeing.’

Ms Caulfield said the framework “delivers key recommendations from the Pregnancy Loss Review” and is part of the Government’s commitment to improving women’s health through its Women’s Health Strategy.

The new policy was trialled at Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Trust, where a staff survey found it made employees twice as likely to stay with their employer.

Raffaela Goodby, chief people officer at the trust, said: ‘I hope this national policy to support mothers and parents with love and compassion at a terrible time in their work in the NHS is welcomed and brings positive change across the UK. ‘

NHS Wales has said it will consider offering a similar programme. No such commitment has yet been made by health services in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

There is no legal right to specific miscarriage leave in Britain, although some employers, and now the NHS in England, have their own policies.

The NHS says that around one in eight pregnancies end in miscarriage, which is medically defined as the loss of the pregnancy during the first 23 weeks.

Other estimates put this figure higher, around one in six, because many women in the very early stages of pregnancy may not realize what to expect if a miscarriage occurs.

Tommy estimates that there are 250,000 miscarriages every year in the UK.

Stillbirths, medically speaking when a baby is born dead after 24 weeks of pregnancy, are much rarer, occurring roughly in one in 250 pregnancies.

Data shows that 2,866 stillbirths were recorded in Britain in 2021.