Hey Baby 4D Northampton

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

The service provided care and treatment based on national guidance and evidence-based practice. Managers checked to make sure staff followed guidance. The team provided consistent standards of care and undertook continuing professional development. Managers monitored the effectiveness of the service and made sure staff were competent. Staff worked well together for the benefit of people and their loved ones. They provided a wide range of health promotion guidance and signposting to help them to lead healthier pregnancies. Staff supported people to make decisions about their care and worked well with regional NHS services to coordinate more complex needs. Services were available flexibly and at short notice.

This service scored 79 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The service had a scan refusal policy, which included 9 criteria under which sonographers would not proceed with a scan. Each criteria formed part of the initial person risk assessment, such as proof of age, stage of pregnancy, and mental capacity. Each type of scan had a defined protocol that sonographers used to ensure scans were safe and based on good practice guidance.

In 2024, sonographers referred 59 people to NHS services for follow-up care, including in urgent circumstances. In most cases this was because there was no foetal heartbeat or no evidence of a viable pregnancy. Sonographers followed established protocols in such cases and ensured the person was supported emotionally whilst they arranged the referral.

Staff followed condition-specific risk assessments for 5 conditions, including gestational diabetes, hypertension, and mental health concerns. In each case staff established the level of risk to the person and baby and the level of support they currently received. They decided whether to proceed with a scan using a risk-based decision process. Similarly, sonographers carried out risk assessments for historic conditions such as ectopic pregnancies and miscarriages. Checks helped establish current risks and any barriers to scanning.

Staff used holistic needs assessments to identify additional areas to support people beyond their request for a reassurance scan or blood test. For example, they used mental health and social care assessments to explore potential need or risk disclosed by the person through discussions about areas such as their living circumstances or past experiences. Sonographers used this approach to identify where people have sought baby scans inappropriately, where an NHS review may have better served their needs.

Staff followed up-to-date policies to plan and deliver high quality care according to national guidance. The provider had a dedicated senior team who monitored policies for compliance with national best practice guidance. Updates were cascaded across all clinic locations simultaneously to ensure all staff delivered care in line with requirements. This system included a record of date changes and reminders of when policies needed to be reviewed.

Staff regularly reviewed guidance and alerts from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the British Medical Ultrasound Society (BMUS), and the Society and College of Radiographers (SCoR). This meant care was in line with the latest understanding of good practice.

Staff carried out monthly peer reviews of practice and an independent sonographer carried out annual reviews and observations of a sample of scans with each sonographer, including locum staff.

Staff worked with local NHS services to ensure scan requests were appropriate and coordinated with national pregnancy pathways. For example, NHS scans were timed at predetermined intervals and staff checked these in advance to ensure people did not undergo excessive scanning. The service had developed links with the local early pregnancy assessment unit and gynaecology assessment unit, which meant sonographers could provide onward referrals, including for urgent needs.

Sonographers accessed peer support from colleagues at other locations in the provider’s network and used case study examples to develop their practice. Locum sonographers participated in this process, which meant the service had assurance of competencies and knowledge.

Appraisals and peer reviews were positive and focused on highlighting good practice and identifying positive, constructive feedback for improvement. These processes reflected the provider’s commitment to person-centred care and the ethos of providing empathetic care during pregnancy. For example, a peer reviewer highlighted how a slight change in language would make people with a foetus in a difficult position to scan feel more relaxed.

Sonographers carried out a wellbeing check as part of each scan, which checked person’s wider health and holistic needs. Staff provided a range of health promotion advice, guidance, and signposting. This included signposting to a service that provided eating well during pregnancy guidance and an exercise guide for each stage of pregnancy.

Staff promoted good standards of hydration and encouraged people to ask for water if more than an hour had passed since their last drink.

The service facilitated access to services that provided extended support and advice. person

Staff provided signposting to a range of specialist support services to help people with decision-making and managing difficult decisions, including to the British Pregnancy Advisory Service.

Staff encouraged parents to undergo First Aid training specific to injuries and emergencies involving infants. They provided a referral to a third-party service that provided such training.

Staff facilitated the learning culture in line with the provider’s national policies and procedures. Staff maintained good standards of day-to-day safety and there had been no incidents in this clinic related to clinical practice or errors. Staff understood how to document and report incidents, and the provider had an up-to-date incident management policy. Staff tracked referrals to NHS services where they found no foetal heartbeat or evidence of a miscarriage.

Managers had access to learning from incidents and near misses across other locations. Managers shared learning and reviews from other locations in team meetings and risk monitoring to make sure staff were aware of this information.

Sonographers worked as peer reviewers nationally to address any complaints or concerns about scan image quality or processes. This reflected good practice and meant locations across the provider network had access to learning and tools to standardise practice.

Staff used person feedback to make improvements. For example, staff improved their mental health assessments and did training in how to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse population. This meant more people were able to access the service.

The service required people to read and sign a consent form 24 hours prior to their scan. The form required disclosures about prior pregnancies and any complications, which sonographers used to plan scans.

Signs in the clinic advised people they had the right to pause or stop a scan at any time if they felt discomfort or pain, or for any other reason. This was included in the consent form and the sonographer discussed it with each person before their scan.

The consent process required people to acknowledge they understood this service was elective, non-diagnostic and did not offer a replacement to NHS care.