A new joint patient leaflet has been launched by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) and a leading patient charity, which will be provided to all pregnant women for the first time.
Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is the UK’s most common cause of life threatening infection in newborn babies, but recent surveys have shown that many pregnant women feel inadequately informed about the illness. On average two babies a day develop the infection, with one a week dying and one a week being left with life-changing disability.
Now a clear and concise patient information leaflet is to be provided to all pregnant women as part of their routine antenatal care. This was jointly written by experts at the RCOG and the campaigning charity Group B Strep Support. The leaflet is based on the RCOG’s recently updated Green-top Guideline, Group B Streptococcal Disease, Early-onset and will be available as a hard copy in 2018 from Group B Strep Support.
A recent survey found that only a third of pregnant women feel adequately informed about GBS and that they were more likely to hear about GBS from a friend or through personal experience, than from health professionals.
Following the RCOG’s September update to its Green-top Guideline, it is now national recommended practice to provide all pregnant women with information about GBS. This new leaflet will ensure women are equipped with high-quality information including on how to minimise the risk of infection in their baby.
Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, said: “We want the NHS to be the safest place in the world to give birth, and part of the fight for safer births is about arming parents and NHS staff with knowledge to spot signs and take preventative action.
“This programme giving parents clear information on the signs of group B Strep infection and guidance on when to seek medical advice is another welcome and important step towards achieving our ambition.”
Labour’s Shadow Health Minister, Justin Madders, added: “I have said in the past that we should be able to do a lot more about group B Strep, given that it is a largely preventable infection. A shocking statistic is that two babies a day develop group B Strep infection. One baby a week will die, and one a week will be left with life-changing disability. These numbers are far too high.
“So I am very pleased to support this partnership between the RCOG and GBSS, and the improved prevention of group B Strep it will bring. This new information leaflet will help families minimise the risk of infection to their baby, so hopefully we will see fewer of these infections going forward.”
Jane Plumb MBE, chief executive, Group B Strep Support, concluded: “We are delighted to be working with the RCOG to raise awareness of group B Strep among pregnant women. For the first time, this new joint leaflet will provide clear, concise and consistent information to all pregnant women throughout the NHS to help improve knowledge and awareness, as well as reduce the mixed messages that are sometimes given about GBS.”
