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" Services for sick babies in England are still being stretched to the limit and do not meet minimum standards, a report suggests. There is a shortage of 1,150 nurses to care for babies in need of specialist hospital care in England alone, with the figure for the UK as a whole thought to be close to 3,000. The report, which was launched yesterday (November 2nd) by special care baby charity Bliss, also claims that many neonatal units are forced to take on more babies than they are supposed to. According to the NHS&amp;#039; Toolkit for High Quality Neonatal Services, published in November 2009, units should have no more than about 80 per cent of their cots filled in order to ensure optimum care and allow for occasional peaks in activity. But the Bliss report shows that four-fifths of units ran well above the recommended occupancy level in 2009, with three-quarters having to reject new admissions at some point during the year. In addition, 60 per cent of mothers were not given accommodation in or next to the unit where their baby was being cared for, and two-fifths of parents were not given any financial assistance to help with expenses and loss of earnings. Andy Cole, chief executive of Bliss, said: &amp;#039;Yet again we are reporting on services being stretched to the limit and vulnerable babies not receiving the care they need and deserve. &amp;#039;The vital care a tiny baby receives in the first few hours, days and weeks of life is crucial to their chance for a bright future. We now want to see the coalition government set out their commitment and take action to transform these essential services.&amp;#039; Cathy Warwick, general secretary of the Royal College of Midwives, said she was &amp;#039;concerned&amp;#039; by the report&amp;#039;s findings. &amp;#039;Midwives and neonatal nurses provide a vital service supporting mothers and babies and more money needs to be invested in neonatal services and staffing to give the most vulnerable babies the best start in life,&amp;#039; she added. Health minister Anne Milton conceded: &amp;#039;It&amp;#039;s clear from this report that there are big challenges to overcome.&amp;#039; "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/healthy-living/news/a20223/services-for-sick-babies-stretched-to-breaking-point/>