Maternal admissions at Central Delivery Suite in Mater Dei Hospital

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Central Delivery Suite is a specialised ward in Mater Dei Hospital (MDH) dedicated for intra-partum care. It consists of nine delivery rooms, an admission room, an operating theatre and a neonatal resuscitation room. Currently, all pregnant mothers of 22 weeks gestation and above are reviewed in this ward. The aim of this audit is to assess the management of bed space at Central Delivery Suite in the absence of a maternity unit triage room.

METHODS: All Central Delivery Suite admissions, over a 4 week period, were logged using the labour ward admission book. Data collected included demographic data, reasons for (planned as well as acute presentations), whether delivery was achieved or not and whether patient was admitted or not. Reasons for acute presentations between the admitted and non-admitted population were compared.

RESULTS: Out of 488 patients, 122 patients (25%) had an elective LSCS or IOL. 366 patients (75%) presented to the labour ward with an acute complaint. Of these, 224 patients (61.2%) were admitted and 142 patients (38.8%) were discharged after review. Out of the 224 patients that were admitted, 171 patients (76.3%) delivered during that admission and 53 patients (23.7%) did not deliver.

CONCLUSION: This audit showed that 53.3% of women who had an unplanned presentation to Central Delivery Suite did not need to block a bed in the labour ward and could have been assessed in a maternity assessment unit. This means better management and utilisation of beds and resources.