MIDWIVES have reassured mothers that the same level of maternity care will be on offer in Malton even if planned changes are approved.

If the NHS Trust turnaround plan' is given the green light, women will no longer be able to give birth in Malton - sparking fears that this is yet another nail in the coffin for the small community hospital.

But head of maternity, Margaret Walker, said mothers should rest assured that all local ante- and post-natal services will be still available to them, even if the new proposals are rubber stamped.

She said: "I have been a midwife for 25 years and things have changed in this time.

"Services modernise and adapt, which is something that people have to accept in every industry.

"Women will still be able to have their babies in their local area as they will be offered the option of home birth if they are low risk.

"Some women won't be confident (about having a home birth) but what they need to realise that there is no medical back up in Malton if something does go wrong.

"It's just as safe having two midwives present at a home birth than having a baby in Malton Hospital."

At the moment a team of seven part-time and full time midwives are based at the hospital and are on call for any woman who goes into labour.

Expectant mothers are offered delivery either in Malton or at home if they are deemed to be low risk.

If they are high risk they are rushed to Scarborough, Northallerton and York to have their babies under tight supervision.

Currently women stay from two to six hours in Malton Hospital after giving birth before been sent home.

Malton has proved popular in the past with pregnant mothers because of its birthing pool.

Only Scarborough and York have this facility, which means longer waiting lists for this pain-relief treatment.

One woman who knows the benefit of Malton's birthing pool is Claire Carter from Leavening.

The 30-year-old had all three of her children at Malton and her last two - four-year-old Lucy and three-week-old Jack - from the comfort of the birthing tub.

She said: "Malton is like a second home and it is such a lovely place to deliver.

"The best thing is the birthing pool, which really takes the edge off giving birth.

"Thankfully Jack came along on a weekday so I was able to come here to have him and I wasn't shipped out to Scarborough.

"I am worried about what is going to happen at Malton maternity unit.

"I had Jack in about an hour and if I had to travel from Leavening to Scarborough it could have been possible that he would have been born in the back of the car."

Scarborough and East Yorkshire Healthcare Trust lead matron Helen Geraughty, who was head of maternity at Malton Hospital from 1999 to 2003, said no redundancies are on the cards if the plans are given the go ahead.

She said the move is about making the service more specialised and there is not enough demand to continue deliveries in Malton.

She said: "The Government wants services to be kept in the community and this is part of policy.

"Women will still be able to have their babies in their own area with the option of home birth.

"At the moment women are voting with their feet and they are choosing not to have their babies at Malton.

"Malton maternity unit will always be here but it's just about making the present system more efficient."

l Malton Hospital hosts ante-natal and post-natal classes twice a week and new mums can take their newborns to be checked and weighed at the maternity unit.

Ryedale midwives, based in Malton hospital are on call 24 hours a day. However, because of staff sickness, this has been cut back to a Monday to Friday service. Weekend births have been referred to Scarborough or York.

The plans are going out to public consultation next month and this is expected to end in March.

Comments are invited and should be addressed to the chief executive of the trust at Scarborough Hospital.