More than one in five mothers in England require emergency medical attention within a year of giving birth, with Black and young mothers disproportionately affected, a new report has revealed.
The Nuffield Trust found that 22 per cent of new mothers accessed emergency care in the 12 months after delivering their babies.
The analysis, which examined 1.6 million deliveries across England between April 2021 and March 2024, showed that emergency hospital admissions occurred after six per cent of births, or one in 20.
Urgent contacts were most frequent in the few days after delivery, with 21 per cent of mothers attending A&E and six per cent needing hospital admission overall.
The report warned that mothers are particularly “vulnerable” during the initial weeks and months following childbirth.
It also stressed that “health inequalities follow women into the next phase of motherhood”, building on previous studies that have exposed disparities experienced by women during pregnancy and birth itself.
Around one in 10 emergency contacts – including both A&E visits and emergency hospital admissions – occurred within the first fortnight, and almost a quarter within the first six weeks.
Researchers said that there was a “notable spike” in emergency contacts for women five days after giving birth.
Stomach pain, chest pain and vaginal bleeding were among the most common reasons for an A&E attendance.
Reasons for emergency admissions, particularly in the first six weeks after giving birth, were bleeding and infections.
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The report highlights “stark disparities” in the women who sought emergency support, including:
- Some 27 per cent of deliveries to mothers living in the most deprived areas were followed by an emergency contact within a year, compared with 17 per cent for those in the least deprived, the authors found.
- Women with a mental health condition faced up to 79 per cent higher odds of a post-natal emergency contact compared to those with no such record.
- Those with obesity had up to 26 per cent increased risk of needing emergency help and those with lung conditions faced up to 45 per cent higher odds.
- Black women were more likely to go to hospital in an emergency during their baby’s first year of life, compared to the overall average. Women with Pakistani, Bangladeshi and “other” Asian ethnicities also faced “substantially elevated” risk.
- Young mothers, under the age of 20, were also more likely to need emergency help.
The Nuffield Trust deputy director of research and report lead, Sarah Scobie, said: “Mothers going to A&E soon after birth are almost certainly bringing their tiny baby with them, or worse, being separated from them at a crucial time.
“In the early weeks and months, mums will want to focus on the joy their new baby brings, instead of fearing an emergency hospital trip while at their most vulnerable.
“Policymakers and NHS leaders must get a handle on whether many post-birth emergency care visits could have been avoided with better community care – or indeed with improved preventive care well before birth.
“The worrying variation we have uncovered indicates that some mothers need much more targeted support from NHS and other community services.
“Many recent reports, including from the Amos Review of maternity services, have brought into stark relief the inequalities faced by women during pregnancy and birth, particularly for Black women. We now have the evidence to show that health inequalities follow women into the next phase of motherhood.
“It’s appalling that for one in five A&E visits in the year after birth, the reason for the visit was not even recorded. This is a clear area for improvement if the NHS is to better understand and support the health needs of mothers during the profoundly life-altering post-birth period.”
