Maternity care for asylum seekers and refugees in Coventry

Different agencies in Coventry that provide services to support asylum seekers and refugees have identified key actions  to respond to Healthwatch Coventry's report Maternity care experiences of asylum seekers and refugees.

The multi-agency workshop was led by the Coventry City Council migration team and hospital maternity team discussed issues, gaps and how to address these. 

Joining services up, building links and sharing information were identified as  important steps.

Ideas for how to give information to women in different ways to overcome language barriers were developed. Ways to pass information between agencies were also identified.

A direct referral route to hospital maternity services has been created that can be used by different organisations to make sure women get to services. 

Taking more services into the community was another action.

Ruth Light, Healthwatch Coventry Chief Officer attended and said:

"I was struck by how well attended the workshop was and by all of the different projects and services people described that are available in the City. There was a real commitment to working together to join services up and develop solutions. Pledges for action were made at the end of the meeting."