STAFF at Bath’s Royal United Hospital have produced a set of maternity virtual tour films to showcase its birthing centres.

The three videos, which were put together by maternity staff and the communications team, take you on a guided journey from the first scan, to care throughout pregnancy and onto the day itself.

The videos were the idea of Midwifery Sister Helen Spurrell, who won backing from the hospital trust’s innovation panel.

“We know it’s not always easy for mums to join one of our regular group visits around our birthing centres so, while those will continue as usual, we thought we’d bring the centres to them with our virtual tour videos,” she said.

“It’s another way to further improve our service, making it more accessible and user-friendly and ensuring consistency of advice, which together will improve the overall experience for women and their families.

“Many thanks to all the mums, babies, families and our maternity staff who took part and helped to make the films. We hope they’re informative and useful.”

On the videos, it provides answers to lots of maternity questions, such as choosing your place of birth and what sort of birth you would prefer.

There is also information on the wards and what happens when it is time to take your newborn home.

The films were made last August but were released to the public this month. The panel provides support and funding for projects to improve patient care and experience or to increase efficiency across the Trust.

To view the videos, visit http://www.ruh.nhs.uk/patients/services/maternity/Virtual_Tours.asp?menu_id=5