I WOULD like to state for the record that it is very much "business as usual" at Fairfield's maternity unit (Mums will choose to go elsewhere, Letters, September 3).

Certainly some mums from the Bury area will choose to have their babies in Bolton; they already do, just as some choose to have their babies at North Manchester General Hospital or Rochdale Infirmary. Some mums expecting complex deliveries choose to have them at St Mary's because of the facilities and staff available there.

As this is a Greater Manchester-wide proposal, we know that the final picture will have to consider how all hospitals continue to work to support each other. In the meantime, we need to be clear about the maternity service offered at Fairfield. Irrespective of the current proposals, it's the same as it ever was.

I've not heard any "rumours" about our service at all. I've read the same proposals that everyone in Bury has been able to read. If the recommendations go ahead then we would see a midwifery-led unit. What no-one can say at this stage is exactly what it will look like. But that's the point of the on-going process and public consultation.

Any midwifery-led unit would be likely to attract a lot of interest from a large number of mums both from Bury and beyond. There is evidence suggesting that these units cut the chances of women facing unnecessary intervention, such as use of forceps or caesarean section.

Birth is not an illness. It is a perfectly normal and natural process, and the NHS should be fully supporting women who want the option of a midwifery-led unit Currently they don't have this choice in Greater Manchester.

But irrespective of what decision is made on the recommendations, nothing will change overnight. The timeframes involved in these proposals are years, not weeks,, and as of today there is no reason for any woman to feel that she needs to opt for another hospital.

The midwives at Fairfield work hard to look after the mums, and address any concerns that they might have. If anyone has any worries or issues they want to raise about how they will be treated then they should simply ask.

Just because the recommendations could have future impact doesn't mean that there will be any change to the level of care and support which continues to be offered by our midwives to the women of Bury.

CATHY TRINICK,

clinical midwifery manager,

Pennine Acute Trust.