Raigmore Hospital's community midwife team has successfully relocated into a new community hub in the grounds of New Craigs Hospital.
The new midwife base is located in the Clava building - an unused residential standalone ward. It was opened on 25 July 2022 and has already provided many benefits for staff and patients.
The base has four clinical rooms, offices for all the midwives and administrators, and a Near Me room so patients can be seen remotely. Each midwife also has their own phone, making communication with patients and the rest of the team much easier.
Before the move, the team were based at Raigmore Hospital in a small room with a capacity for ten workers, for a team of 15 midwives, 1 administrator, plus a group of infant feeding and other support workers. Over the last 3 years the team had to travel every day to Culloden Dental Clinic to access 2 clinical rooms for their 800 patients a year. Patients also had to go to Culloden no matter where they lived, and because of COVID-19 restrictions there was no waiting room facility, meaning they would have nowhere to wait before their appointment time.
Now, there is a large waiting room where patients can relax before their appointments, giving them a more positive experience. With the enhanced space and new facilities, women have the opportunity to form relationships and find a midwife that is perfectly suited to them.
Carole Murphy, Lead Midwife, said: “We are all really excited - the long-awaited move to Clava has given us just what we needed and more!
The team are settling well into the new accommodation, and we hope to start implementing other small changes in the very near future. We have so many ideas of how to improve the midwifery care we offer to Inverness women. Currently we are working towards running a robust antenatal education programme.”
Lin Borthwick, Community Midwife Team Leader, added: “Community midwives are doing a fantastic job, and the women of the Inverness City community are so happy with the new base.”