Disclaimer

This ethical hub topic shows ways in which our professional standards can be applied in this area of care and signposts to relevant resources. It does not set new professional standards and is not intended to replace the formal guidance. Page last reviewed: 2 October 2025

Maternity care

Working effectively with your colleagues is essential for making sure that every patient receives equitable, safe and supportive maternity care.

We worked with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) to develop these resources given the importance of multidisciplinary working in maternity care. We’ve gathered feedback from healthcare organisations, including NHS England’s Perinatal Culture and Leadership Programme, maternity professionals, and people with lived experience. The NMC have produced accompanying case studies. Both resources advise on the professional standards around teamwork, addressing communication barriers, supporting patients to make decisions, escalating concerns and the importance of candour, and tackling inequalities. 

This page offers practical advice for you if you are an obstetrician, a physician associate or anaesthesia associate involved in providing maternity care. Elements of the page will also be useful to you if you are a GP, particularly the section on supporting perinatal mental health. If you are a neonatologist, the page includes advice on supporting patients who have experienced bereavement.

You will already be aware of what good practice looks like in maternity care and we recognise that workforce pressures can make this challenging. We support you in speaking up where inadequate systems prevent you from meeting the standards we set out and where patient safety is at risk as a result.

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Teamworking

Teamworking

It is essential for good and safe patient care that you work effectively with colleagues. This includes working within and between teams, as well as working with other healthcare providers. In this section, we provide advice on how to work effectively as a multidisciplinary team.

Team relationships

Issues within teams can impact patient care and outcomes. This section includes information on how to improve teamworking and the importance of tackling discrimination.

 

Remaining compassionate under pressure

Rude or unprofessional behaviour can have a significant impact on patient care. See advice on actions you can take to encourage openness and relationship building within teams.

Managing handovers and transitions of care

Gaps in perinatal care, in areas including mental health, can occur if handovers are not done well. Find advice on transferring care between providers and supporting your patients’ mental health.

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Useful resources

Useful resources about transferring and sharing care, supporting perinatal mental health and advice on caring for patients who are having a multiple pregnancy.

Communication

Communication 

Building trust with your patients and making sure they feel heard is crucial. Serious harm can result if patients are not listened to, given the information they need, or the time and support to understand it. This section provides advice on communication and the importance of addressing language and communication barriers for patients, including those where English is not their first language.

Communication with patients

Language and communication barriers can have a significant impact on a patient’s perinatal experience. This section provides information on  addressing those barriers and making sure that your patient’s communication needs are met.

Bereavement and early birth losses

Pregnancy loss and baby loss is devastating for patients. Find advice on how to support your patient and guidance on decision making when neonates may be approaching end of life.

 

Intimate examinations

Perceptions about intimate examinations may differ in maternity settings because these examinations are more common. But this doesn’t change the standards you must follow. See advice on explaining intimate examinations and seeking your patient’s consent.

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Useful resources

Resources that provide advice for you on bereavement care, as well as organisations that can support your patient if they’ve experienced pregnancy loss or baby loss. Also signposts to resources to help you to seek feedback from patients.

Treatment options

Treatment options

There is no place for the expression of personal biases by healthcare professionals about birthing and treatment options. Doing so can have a negative impact on both patient expectations and a patient’s ability to make decisions freely. This section provides advice on supporting patients to make decisions.

How to support patients to make decisions

Disregarding a patient’s individual circumstances and instead expressing a personal bias about the type of birth a patient should have isn’t in line with the professional standards. Find advice here on listening to patients and finding out what matters to them.

What to do if you disagree with a patient’s decision

You may be in a situation in which a patient asks for treatment or care that you don’t think would be in their clinical interests. This section provides information on what to do if that happens.

Looking ahead to future decisions

Discussing risks is challenging in a time-pressured situation. Your patient might be in pain, confused or afraid. See advice on discussing care and treatment options before your patient gives birth.

 

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Useful resources

Links to guidance on personalising maternity care.

Escalation

Escalation

We recognise the fears that may be associated with speaking up. But it is your professional duty to act and raise a concern if you think that patient safety is, or may be, at risk.

Leaders have a responsibility to nurture positive working environments where colleagues feel empowered and supported to raise concerns, as well as establishing cultures that embed improvement and address any issues that may be putting patients at risk.

In the event of an adverse incident, poor handling and an absence of openness and candour can result in patient harm, worsen distress for families and lead to poor practice becoming normalised.

This section provides advice on speaking up, the need to establish effective systems to support patient care and what to do when something goes wrong.

Responding to safety risks

Not raising a concern if you think that patient safety is, or may be, at risk can have significant consequences for patients. Find advice on responding to safety risks and your responsibilities if you have a management role.

 

What to do when things don’t go right

An absence of openness and candour can result in serious patient harm. This section provides advice on  the professional duty of candour and your responsibilities if you have a management role.

Triage systems

Poor maternity triage systems can make it difficult for staff to see and treat patients effectively. See advice on the importance of good practice in triage.

 

 

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Useful resources

Resources that can provide you with further guidance and information on the duty of candour.

Inequalities

Inequalities

You have a responsibility to make sure that patients receive safe personalised equitable maternity care. Persistent inequalities in perinatal care puts patients at risk. This section provides advice on the actions you can take to reduce inequalities and improve care for your patients.

Inequalities in perinatal care

Inequalities in perinatal care impact maternal mortality, patient engagement with healthcare and patient experiences when they receive care. Find further information on care inequalities and their impact.


What can you do to improve patient care and reduce inequalities?

Taking action to improve care for patients and reduce inequalities align with the good practice expectations that we already set out. This section gives advice on the actions you can take to improve care for patients and reduce healthcare inequalities.

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Useful resources

Links to information on maternity data, as well as resources about tailoring care and travel reimbursement schemes. Also signposts to resources and organisations with a focus on reducing inequalities in maternity care.