Dr Julia Clark, registered midwife and qualitative researcher at Sands, explains how a new project is bringing together the experiences of midwives, healthcare professionals and bereaved parents to help improve care for pregnancies affected by diabetes – and how RCM members can get involved.
Diabetes in pregnancy is becoming increasingly common. For the women and families affected, getting the right care and support matters.
Rates of pregnancy loss and baby deaths are higher in pregnancies affected by diabetes, with significant inequalities in outcomes. One 2026 study found that, between 2018 and 2022, one in eight women in England developed gestational diabetes alone.
But we also know that with the right screening and care, risks can be reduced and babies’ lives can be saved.
The Sands Saving Babies’ Lives team is now launching a new project, funded by Teddy’s Wish, to look specifically at care and experiences in pregnancies affected by diabetes.
An MBRRACE-UK perinatal confidential enquiry is due to be published in summer 2027. It is examining medical records to learn about the care provided when a baby died following a pregnancy affected by diabetes.
Alongside that work, we want to make sure the voices of bereaved parents and the healthcare professionals providing care are heard.
We’re listening to bereaved parents with experience of diabetes in pregnancy, healthcare professionals and other diabetes experts to understand what is working well, where care needs to improve and what could help prevent more pregnancy losses and baby deaths.
In June 2027, we will publish a report alongside the confidential enquiry, sharing what we have learned from healthcare professionals and bereaved parents and helping to build the case for improvements in care.
This is where RCM members come in.
We want to hear from healthcare professionals working across all areas of diabetes care, including pre-conception, antenatal and postnatal care, and from people with different levels of experience and expertise.
You don’t need to be a diabetes specialist to have something valuable to contribute. We particularly want to encourage student midwives to share their experiences too.
If you work in healthcare and have been involved in providing diabetes care during, or connected to, pregnancy in the UK since 2021, you can share your experiences through our online survey.
By sharing what you’ve seen in practice – what works, what doesn’t and where things could be better – you can help us build a clearer picture of diabetes care in pregnancy and where change is needed.
