Domino maternity service at CUMH to be restored next year
Service reductions to the Domino service at Cork University Maternity Hospital will be fully reversed in 2027, according to a statement from the Department of Health.
They said that the cutback in services was as a result of a "temporary redeployment" of Domino midwives to "support the skill mix in the labour ward and help ensure the safe and continued delivery of maternity services".
The change means that the post-natal care which was provided by the Domino Scheme is currently being provided through the Early Transfer Home midwifery service.
They said that this redeployment will be reversed in 2027, and post-natal care will return to the Domino service.
At its last full meeting on Monday 12 October, Cork City Council passed a motion calling for the Minister of Health to intervene to correct the service reduction. Cllr Niamh O'Connor, who proposed the motion, said that the news that the reduction will be reversed in 2027 is welcome, but that it was disappointing that there was no set date.
"This episode, along with previous cuts to the Domino Scheme elsewhere massively undermine parents' ability to rely on this service into the future. Pregnancy is a time where parents need certainty. If the Minister really wants to give parents the choice of midwife led care, then she needs to make sure it's protected into the future and not the first thing on the chopping block when there are staffing issues," she said.
Cllr O'Connor highlighted that the scheme is incredibly popular with women in Cork, which saw over 400 pregnancies handled by the service in 2024. She herself made use of the service during the birth of her son, where she said she was able to return home just six hours after giving birth.
Cllr Peter Horgan said he would also raise the issue at the next meeting of the HSE South West Regional Health Forum on 5 November.
The Domino scheme is a model of continuity of maternity care offered by CUMH. Pregnant women meet a small team of midwives who provide care throughout the pregnancy and do their prenatal checks in the community.
A member of that team then helps to deliver the baby at CUMH, and visits the woman in the five days after she gives birth to provide support in her post-natal care, as well as helping with breast-feeding and other childcare needs.
This article was produced with the support of the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme funded by Coimisiún na Meán.