WORK to cut the town’s higher-than-average rates of pregnant smokers has resulted in scores of expectant mums kicking the habit.
Barnsley Hospital’s maternity stop smoking team has made ‘incredible strides’ to help women quit before their babies are born.
In 2019/20, levels of smokers at the time of delivery stood at 14.62 per cent, but last year’s figure dropped to 9.7 per cent.
The team has an incentive scheme and since it started in April 2022, 52 women have maintained quitting from smoking until their babies were eight weeks old and beyond.
Debbie Hayes, a midwife who has spearheaded the campaign, said: “The maternity stop smoking team of four also provides support in many other ways, including offering information on smoke-free homes and cars, receiving stop smoking referrals and carrying out home visits and telephone conversations.
“Women can also refer themselves for support.”
One successful quitter is Chelsea Ogilvie, who was referred into the maternity stop smoking team service when expecting her sixth baby.
She added: “It was when I was told if I could stop before 15 weeks there shouldn’t be any damage to the placenta.
“I think that was the push I needed - that little ‘last chance’ window.”
Chelsea managed to quit and went on to give birth to a baby girl.
“The kids have all said cuddles are better now as I don’t smell of smoke and they sit with me longer.
“That could be because I’ve got more time - I’m not going outside every five minutes.
“At one point, my app said I’d stopped for 266 days and saved £1,315.
“It’s amazing how much smoking costs and you don’t even realise it.
“The stop smoking team have no idea what they’ve done for me and my family by helping me quit.
“I didn’t just stop for the baby - it was for all my kids.
“I felt supported instead of judged and it made a massive difference I’ll be eternally grateful for.”
Call 01226 432193 for support or email maternity.stopsmoking@nhs.net.
ONE in eight pregnant women in Barnsley were smokers at the time they gave birth, new figures have revealed.
NHS England figures show that a total of 393 of the 2,929 mothers 13.4 per cent were smokers at the time of delivery in the last year.
The figure was well above the national ambition of six per cent or less.
The figures also show just eight of the 106 sub-integrated care boards that submitted smoking rates met the target, most of which were in London.
It comes as the Smoking in Pregnancy Challenge Group forecast the government’s target to reduce rates of maternal smoking to six per cent by 2022 will only be met in 2032.
Dr Clea Harmer, co-chair of the Smoking in Pregnancy Challenge Group, said helping more mums-to-be quit smoking spares dozens of families from losing their baby to stillbirth or miscarriage, as well as easing pressure on vital NHS services.
Nationally, 8.8 per cent of pregnant women were smoking at time of delivery in 2022/23 - a slight fall from 9.1 per cent the year before.
“We are deeply concerned that the government has missed their target of six per cent or fewer pregnant women smoking and isn’t on track to achieve it until the 2030s.
“The measures announced in April are an important step in the right direction, but they follow years of inaction and delay from successive governments.”
