Maternity trauma and loss care

We are a small team of:

• Psychological practitioners
• Specialist midwives
• Administrators.

We're passionate about and dedicated to supporting individuals in a gentle, empathic, and trauma-informed way through this difficult time in their lives. We are open, friendly, and dedicated to helping alleviate suffering and distress. 

MTLC is a service for women and birthing people:

• Aged 18+
• Who reside in one of the eight North West London boroughs: Ealing, Hounslow, Hammersmith and Fulham, Brent, Harrow, Hillingdon, Westminster, and Kensington and Chelsea.

and who:

• have a severe fear of childbirth, also known as Tokophobia (with or without previous experience of pregnancy)
• Have had a traumatic pregnancy, birth, or postnatal experience
• Have trauma following the loss of a baby during pregnancy or within the first year after delivery
• Have also experienced other traumatic events or experiences that are negatively impacting a current pregnancy or experience of parenting during the first year after giving birth.

Please note that:

If you're currently pregnant, you must also be receiving maternity care from one of the six maternity units in North West London:​​​​​​

• ​​​​​Chelsea & Westminster Hospital
• West Middlesex Hospital
• Queen Charlotte’s and Chelsea Hospital
• St Mary’s Hospital
• Northwick Park Hospital
• Hillingdon Hospital

We're currently unable to accept referrals for pregnant people who reside in North West London but are receiving maternity care elsewhere.

• We only accept referrals that are one-month post-trauma/loss to allow for natural grieving/healing processes
• We don't routinely accept referrals for Primary Tokophobia for people past 32 weeks of pregnancy.  However, do give the team a call to discuss any such referrals
• We're currently unable to provide support for parents who have a baby that is no longer in their care; this includes women and birthing people whose baby is in the care of the Local Authority.

We offer evidence-based psychological support and specialist midwifery care, taking into account what has or hasn’t helped in the past. We will work with women and birthing people to ensure that treatment is suited to meet their particular needs.

Our team offers the following:

• Individual talking therapies
• Group therapies
• Detailed birth planning
• Advice on other services that may be helpful now or in the future
• Information on support services for partners and significant others.

The service accepts both self-referrals and referrals from health and social care professionals, such as GPs, midwives or health visitors. Consent must be obtained from the woman before any professional initiates a referral.

Refer yourself to the maternity trauma and loss care service

Refer someone to the service (professional's referral form) 

What happens after referral?   
    
All referrals will be triaged by an MTLC clinician, and if it's established that the service is suitable to provide support or treatment, an initial assessment appointment will be offered. 

Initial assessments will take place either face-to-face or online, as appropriate. If it's considered that a more appropriate service is available, you'll be contacted to discuss this further and offered advice and support with an onward referral to an alternative service.

Please note, that to ensure your care is coordinated with all healthcare professionals who are looking after you, a copy of all letters that MTLC sends to you will be shared with your GP and any other relevant healthcare professionals involved in your care.

Interpreting and translation
   
An interpreter can be requested to be present at appointments, either in person, via video, or over the phone. It's also possible to request written information to be translated. Please let the team know if an interpreter or translation is required.

You can download and print our patient leaflet here. 

We value your feedback about your experience with MTLC and the care you received from us, as it helps us monitor and improve our services and deliver better patient-centred care.

We would appreciate a few minutes of your time to share your feedback anonymously by clicking on this link or scanning the QR code with your mobile phone:

Please also complete the Friends and Family Test (quoting Maternity Trauma & Loss Care or MTLC as the name of the service) by clicking on this link or scanning the QR code with your mobile phone:

If you’re unhappy about any aspect of your care, please let us know as soon as possible by speaking to your MTLC clinician. 

Alternatively, you can raise a concern or complaint via the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) on 0800 064 3330 or pals@westlondon.nhs.uk.