4 April 2025

We have seen mothers in wartorn Gaza grieving over the deaths of their children or sitting in the hospital beside an injured child. We have seen mothers in refugee camps making an hospitable home out of basic materials. We have seen mothers carrying children for miles in search of food and water. And mothers devastated by the earthquake in South-East Asia.

But we have also seen mothers in our own land who for one reason or another have been devastated by the lack of care which they and their newborn children have experienced in our hospitals. Childbirth which is one of the most natural things that happen in the world has become fraught with danger.

Last autumn, it was reported that 131 families had suffered the loss of a baby and catastrophic injuries to infants and mothers in maternity units across Scotland in recent years. This was two years after the Royal College of Midwives warned the Scottish Government about the crisis in staffing and resources in maternity units.

Over the last five years, £74 million has been paid out in compensation as a result of tragedies in Scottish maternity hospitals. This not only confirms the inadequacy of the service but also reveals the human tragedies which have befallen mothers and their newborn babies. The vocation of motherhood is not an easy option. It has dire consequences for some.

Motherhood does not guarantee an easy life. It is a commitment which begins long before the child is born and it never ceases until one crosses the threshold of death! ‘Sorrow like a sharp sword shall pierce your own soul also.’ said Simeon to Mary, the young mother. Thirty-three years later, she stood at the foot of the cross and endured the fulfilment of his prophecy.