The CSIT Professional Union denounces a shortage of midwives and nursing assistants in the Obstetrics Service at Puerta de Hierro Hospital in Majadahonda, which handled 2,560 births in 2024. They warn that safety ratios are being exceeded and have taken the case to court.
Puerta de Hierro Majadahonda University Hospital, a reference centre for municipalities such as Majadahonda, Boadilla del Monte, and Las Rozas, is facing a critical situation in its Obstetrics Service. The CSIT Professional Union section has reported a lack of midwives and nursing auxiliary technicians (TCAE), which they warn compromises the safety of mothers and newborns.
A structural deficit that worsens
According to data provided by the union, 2,560 births were attended to at the centre in 2024, with a staff of 32 midwives. By 2026, the forecast is to reduce this to 31 professionals, despite an increase of about 200 births recorded in 2025. CSIT considers this staffing to be insufficient and that the comparison with other public hospitals in Madrid clearly shows a lack of proportionality.
The union points out that some centres that handle between 900 and 1,300 fewer births per year have staff ranging from 25 to 31 midwives. One of them, with 1,641 annual births, has a staffing level equivalent to that planned for Puerta de Hierro, despite recording obstetric activity that is over 900 births lower. This situation leads CSIT to speak of a repeated exceeding of safety ratios.
It compromises the safety of mothers and newborns
The union has sent several communications to the on-duty court to inform them of this situation, which they consider a risk for patients and staff. They assert that the hospital management and the Human Resources and Nursing Directorate are not taking effective measures to correct the structural personnel deficit.
Insufficient measures and workload overload
In response to the complaints, the only measure taken so far has been the closure of the midwife consultation, a decision that, according to CSIT, has led to the disappearance of a highly valued assistance resource during pregnancy. The union denounces that this deprives patients of specialised, close, and preventive care, while the insufficient coverage of shifts in the Obstetrics Service persists.
Another response from those in charge has been extraordinary shifts, which generates ongoing overexertion for midwives and TCAs. CSIT warns that this approach cannot become the usual response to a structural personnel shortage. "The protection of women and their newborns cannot depend on the extraordinary effort of an insufficient and exhausted staff," they emphasise.
For the residents of Majadahonda, Boadilla del Monte, and Las Rozas, who have Puerta de Hierro as their reference hospital, this situation represents a direct concern about the quality of care at one of the most sensitive moments in life. The union demands the urgent hiring of midwives and TCAE staff, a review of the staffing levels, and the adjustment of resources to the number of births, delivery rooms, shifts, and actual service needs.
CSIT warns that it will continue to use all institutional, administrative, and legal avenues available to ensure safe assistance. Meanwhile, patients and their families hope that management will take action before a serious incident occurs.
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