Retaining skills and knowledge

There is a wealth of evidence that both skills and knowledge decay over time. 12 months appears to be the tipping point at which clinicians' ability to respond most effectively to an emergency will reduce if not updated. Therefore we advocate annual training for all staff.

Updating knowledge

Medical advances never stand still. Every year national bodies, and local maternity units, produce a wealth of new guidelines based on the latest evidence. Annual training allows all maternity staff to keep themselves up to date; delivering the very best level of care for women.

Better patient outcomes

Evidence shows that maternity training will only improve patient outcomes if it:

• is multi-professional
• is based on the maternity unit
• trains 100% of staff
• is reinforced annually