Mannequins that simulate childbirth at West Midlands Ambulance Service

The five Victoria mannequins, costing £69,000 each, will give staff the most realistic scenarios possible to help train them in maternity care.

They will be unveiled for the first time by West Midlands Ambulance Service at a Maternity Roadshow today and are part of a plan to improve maternity care following the avoidable death of newborn Kate Stanton-Davies in March 2009.

The simulators are the only ones available that can birth a simulated baby by itself.

It integrates with other equipment - called the Zoll Series monitor/defibrillator - which allows real-time monitoring of blood pressure, blood oxygen levels, respiratory rate and heart rate of the mother.

WMAS maternity lead, Steph Henry, said: “The mannequins are incredible pieces of equipment that will undoubtedly help improve the confidence and competency of our staff when attending obstetric emergencies.

“We have been very privileged to have secured talks from a number of specialists for our Roadshow and I hope all of the staff who attend will take a lot from it and give them more confidence when providing pre-hospital maternity care.”

Kate died hours after her birth. Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust (SaTH) chief executive Simon Wright apologised "unreservedly" for shortcomings after a review said they had failed to establish facts and accountability.

Rhiannon Davies and Richard Stanton said: “Following our catastrophic experience in 2009 and the death of our daughter Kate, we struggled to have the many questions we had relating to her care answered.

It wasn’t until after Kate’s inquest in 2012, when the failings were laid bare, that WMAS chief executive, Anthony Marsh, got in touch. 

“Although WMAS’ actions were in no way contributory to Kate’s avoidable death, he was genuinely appalled at what had befallen us as a family and wanted to learn all lessons he possibly could to ensure no other family went what we went through. 

WMAS said after the tragedy it undertook a full review of the maternity care it provides, which included significant consultation with Kate’s parents.

He added: “Mr Marsh has continued to listen to us, to engage with us, to take our ideas forward and advance the care his paramedics are able to offer.

"We are proud of each of the changes we have influenced on behalf of Kate."

"And we are equally proud of the entire WMAS family for being committed to advancing their learning and for the continuous improvements they just keep on making."

The mannequins will be revealed at the Trust’s first maternity roadshow at Sandwell Hub today.

The trust has also introduced maternity champions at its 14 hubs, increasing the quality and number of maternity training sessions available, with ambulance clinicians being given the opportunity to shadow shifts in maternity units.