IT'S no laughing matter as repair to system is botched and mums-to-be have to do without gas and air at Basildon Hospital.

The use of gas and air pain relief at the hospital's maternity suite has been suspended after some staff were exposed to high levels of nitrous oxide.

A repair team were supposed to have fixed a leak but it turns out their work  was botched and now the hospital is having to wait for a new ventilator system.

After staff began to report they were feeling unwell last it was found there was a leak in the system that supplies Entonox to mums in labour.

The Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust said there was no harm to mothers and babies.

The trust also said other pain relief methods would be available.

The hospital's acting chief executive Hannah Coffey has said, in internal correspondence, that the situation and a lengthy delay in installing a new unit is 'unacceptable' but her public face is slightly different.

An announcement from the Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust quotes her as saying: "We're very sorry that women using the service won't have access to Entonox.

"While there has been no risk of harm at all to mothers and babies who have used the unit, prolonged exposure to the gas can lead to issues with vitamin B12 deficiency.

"We need to be sure that we are keeping our staff safe, so while we urgently install a new ventilation system we have taken the difficult decision to suspend the use of Entonox."

Acute exposure to nitrous oxide can lead to anaemia, due to the vitamin B12 depletion, and has been linked to fertility issues.

Ms Coffey said all maternity units in the trust, including community sites, would be regularly tested.

The Trust adds there was no harm to mothers and babies. It says windows were kept open and fans kept on during the investigations.

Pregnant members of staff were redeployed to other hospital areas.

Ms Coffey  has also said: "Our midwives are contacting the families we expect to have their babies at Basildon over the next three weeks to talk to them about the options available to them."

Val Wilcox, from the Essex branch of the National Childbirth Trust,  says: "It's going to be really disappointing for local women who are expecting to give birth in the next few weeks because they're going to have to rethink their options.

"But it's also really disappointing that the health of our precious midwifery team has been put at risk and put at risk for quite a while."

It's the latest issue in what has been a trouble year for the maternity unit: https://thurrock.nub.news/news/local-news/more-incidents-flagged-up-in-report-on-basildon-maternity-care-134461