The Problem

~ 1 in 10 =

Require Enhanced Maternal Care (Beddoes)[1]

1 in 300 =

experience severe morbidity
(Masterson)[2]

Maternal mortality is now rising in the UK.

12.8 per 100,000

maternities – a 20% increase since 2011 (MBRRACE 2025[3])

9% of all pregnant or recently pregnant women will become unwell enough to require additional care in a maternity setting (Enhanced Maternal Care)[1]

For every maternal death, an estimated 70 – 90 women experience life-threatening complications requiring critical or high-dependency care.[4][5]

Care could have been improved in nearly half of maternal deaths (MBRRACE-UK, 2022) . [4]

24.5%

of women admitted to ICU are readmitted to hospital within one year.[2]

58.6%

of the babies born to women admitted to ICU required neonatal critical care[2].

Consequences for Mothers and Babies when a mother is admitted to ICU

40x

higher risk of death within one year of ICU admission[2].

10x

higher odds of stillbirth.[2]

Surviving a critical illness during or after pregnancy can have a profound and lasting effect on mental health, with significantly increased risks of depression, anxiety, PTSD, psychosis and other psychiatric conditions, as well as elevated suicide risk, in the months that follow.[6][7][8]

[Lewkowitz et al 2019; Wall-Wieler et al 2019; Blackman et al 2024].

Download the presentation to explore the latest evidence, clinical learning points and recommendations shaping maternal critical care across the UK.

Download the report

Maternal Medicine & MBRRACE-UK 2025 Update[9]

A national clinical update exploring the latest findings from MBRRACE-UK and their implications for maternal critical care, intensive care services and multidisciplinary maternity teams.

Presented by Dr Anita Banerjee, this resource highlights emerging risks, inequalities, critical care pressures and the urgent need for improved coordination, education and support for critically ill pregnant and recently pregnant women.

Topics include:

maternal mortality trends
thromboembolism and cardiac disease
maternal mental health
enhanced maternal care
critical care escalation
health inequalities
multidisciplinary working
national recommendations and policy priorities

Supporting you:

By uniting healthcare providers, policymakers and communities, we can create meaningful, lasting change in maternal critical care. Every woman who faces a critical illness during or after pregnancy deserves the right care, in the right place, at the right time, and the support to rebuild her life afterwards.