Jersey's miscarriage pathway already reflects graded scheme suggested in UK - Jersey Evening Post
by Megan Davies · Jersey Evening PostPosted inNews
Jersey’s miscarriage pathway already reflects graded scheme suggested in UK
by Megan Davies 14 July 202613 July 2026
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MISCARRIAGE support in Jersey “already reflects” the early-care approach being suggested in the UK, the Health Department has said.
Currently, patients in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are eligible for specialist care on the NHS for early baby losses after they have had a minimum of three miscarriages.
But miscarriage charity Tommy’s has called for people to be eligible after one miscarriage, stating this could reduce the risk of future miscarriages and improve health outcomes.
It comes after a pilot project at Birmingham Women and Children’s Hospital provided support after just one miscarriage, and provided progressively more intervention after each baby loss.
Jersey gynaecology and assisted reproduction consultant Dr Enda McVeigh said the Island’s miscarriage service is “structured around a triage and escalation model that is, in a key respect, already ahead of where standard NHS care in England has sat historically”.
He added that miscarriage is a “profoundly distressing experience – not only for the women who go through it, but for their partners too, and it’s an area that deserves far more open discussion than it traditionally receives”.
Dr McVeigh explained that when Islanders suffer their first miscarriage, they are seen by the Early Pregnancy Service, which provides “support and education by experienced nursing staff”.
“Should a woman experience a second miscarriage, she is referred directly to the dedicated clinic at the Assisted Reproduction Unit, where investigations are carried out in keeping with national UK guidelines,” he said.
“This is earlier than the ‘wait until three losses’ threshold that has typically applied under standard NHS practice, and it is aligned with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists guidance.
“Counselling support is available at every stage of this pathway. Jersey’s existing pathway already reflects much of the spirit of the graded approach suggested in the UK – investigating from the second loss rather than the third, with additional support and ability to escalate even after one miscarriage.”
The Birmingham pilot project saw people who had suffered one miscarriage given a one-to-one consultation with a specialist nurse to discuss lifestyle changes and offered the hormone progesterone, which can help prevent miscarriage.
After a second miscarriage, patients were tested for anaemia and abnormal thyroid function, which can affect pregnancy outcomes. They were also offered early scans to reassure them that the pregnancy was advancing normally.
Following a third miscarriage, the pathway joins up with what the NHS currently offers – including a referral to a recurrent miscarriage clinic, further blood tests and a pelvic ultrasound.
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