EXCLUSIVE
BY Richard Edwards and Vicki Shaw
EIGHT women about to give birth were turned away by Leeds hospitals – because of a lack of nurses.
Instead they were sent to other centres across West Yorkshire, some up to 15 miles away.
Many mums-to-be had already received their ante-natal care at Leeds General Infirmary or St James's and had expected to give birth in familiar surroundings.
But unprecedented demand and high levels of staff sickness meant hospital bosses had to shut maternity wards to new admissions.
One first-time parent, Libby Whitehead, was told "the doors are closed" when she rang LGI to alert them she was coming in on Easter Sunday.
Instead she was told she should make a 25-mile round trip to Dewsbury – a town where Libby had never even been – to give birth.
Along with her mum Shirley, Libby arrived at Dewsbury District Hospital at 1am, only to face being turned away again.
Libby, 17, from Pudsey, was only in the early stages of labour and so was asked to either go home or offered a place on the ward by herself – and without her mum.
Rather than be alone she chose to go home. But within an hour was having regular contractions, so her mum rang LGI again.
Again they were told there was "no room at the inn" and they were again told to go to Dewsbury.
They returned once more and baby girl Eloise arrived just 40 minutes later at 5.11am. The labour was so far advanced it was too late for any pain relief.
Libby said: "Having your first baby is an anxious enough time, without being pushed from pillar to post while you're in labour.
"I was in so much pain I didn't really know what was going on, so I was really glad my mum and dad were there to help. I was shocked when the hospital was shut but it is over now and Eloise is gorgeous."
Shirley, 42, from Methley, added: "Fortunately it all went well in the end but it was a very stressful few hours.
"Libby had got to know Leeds General Infirmary – she been for all her tests and scans there – and had just presumed she would have her baby there.
"Luckily she had her family around her. Imagine if Libby had been on her own. As a 17-year-old giving birth to her first child she would have been terrified.
"The staff at Dewsbury Hospital were fantastic, they did a great job. But the consequences could have been very different."
A spokesman for Leeds Teaching Hospitals stressed the temporary closure of maternity facilities was due to staff illness – not a permanent shortage of nurses.
There is, however, it seems, little lee-way in the system when there is large scale sickness as cash-strapped bosses have imposed a freeze on replacing leaving staff. Many areas are already down in numbers. There is also a ban on buying in agency staff to cover for illness or holidays and on overtime.
The spokesman added: "The situation over the Easter weekend arose because of a combination of high demand and unexpected staff shortages due to sickness. Staff were under enormous pressure and unfortunately we had to refer eight women in total to other hospitals in West Yorkshire.
"In the case of Ms Whitehead, a clinical decision had to be made in the best interests of her and her unborn baby and she was referred to Dewsbury District Hospital so she could safely deliver her baby.
"We are concerned to hear about the issues Ms Whitehead has raised about the contact she had with staff at the Trust and we would welcome an opportunity to discuss them with her directly."
richard.edwards@ypn.co.uk