THE FORMER MASTER of Holles Street says idea of ‘latent phase’ of labour should be excised from guidelines due to potentially catastrophic outcomes for mothers and babies.

Peter Boylan is urging a review of the national guidelines around maternity services, warning that the current recommendations can lead to dangerous outcomes for women and babies.

Speaking on RTÉ Radio One, he pointed to recent findings of the Ockenden report in the UK, which found that more than 500 mothers and babies suffered avoidable harm or died in the country’s maternity system.

“My concern is that we are going to introduce something in Irish labour that has led to catastrophic outcomes in the UK,” Boylan said.

He added that the guidelines say that the first stage of labour doesn’t start until woman is at four centimetres dilation, which is “40% of the way” into birth given delivery will take place at 10 centimetres dilation.

Boylan said that as the guidelines advise that foetal monitoring doesn’t need to start until the beginning of labour, it could mean “that from o to 4 centimetres the baby is not monitored, and that’s dangerous”.

Responding to Boylan’s remarks on Morning Ireland, Clíona Murphy, a doctor with the HSE, told the programme that the former Holles Master has “over-interpreted the guideline”, which she said are for “women with uncomplicated single pregnancies, and women who are trying to avoid over intervention and less medicalisation”.

“Things have moved on in Ireland, women are involved in their care, women are advocates for their care, and midwives develop good relationships with women, so it’s individualised care,” Murphy said.

She contrasted this with the previous, “slightly more paternalistic model where women were told what was happening, and there was no discussion with women” about their choices during labour.