A SENIOR doctor warned last night that an under-fire maternity unit could close unless it gets public support.

Officials fear expectant mothers may boycott the new midwife-run maternity unit at Bishop Auckland General Hospital after an incident in which a woman lost her baby.

Robert Aitken, medical director of County Durham and Darlington Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, said that without the full backing of the community the unit could not survive.

On Wednesday, the trust admitted that Andrea Harrison, 29, from Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, was wrongly classified as being a low-risk expectant mother.

Instead of being booked to have her baby at the midwife-run unit in Bishop Auckland, she should have been booked in at Darlington.

When Mrs Harrison's unborn baby was showing signs of distress, a mix-up meant that instead of being taken to Darlington by ambulance, she was told it would be quicker to go by car.

A few hours after she arrived in Darlington the baby was dead on delivery.

While the Harrisons remain sceptical about the safety of the Bishop Auckland unit, the trust wants to rebuild public confidence as quickly as possible. The story hit national headlines and has severely dented public confidence in the midwife-led service.

Tim Yeo, Conservative health spokesman, has written to Health Secretary John Reid expressing concern about the case and asking for assurances that every midwife-led unit has adequate emergency plans in place.

Bishop Auckland MP Derek Foster will also be meeting trust bosses today to seek assurances on the safety of the unit.

In a bid to head off the growing storm, Mr Aitken spoke out to stress that the Bishop Auckland maternity unit was a safe place to give birth.

He pointed out that:

* Midwives who work in the unit are all trained to advanced life support standard in obstetrics.

* The unit is equipped with a full range of life support equipment, including incubators and resuscitators.

* Midwives work closely with doctors from the hospital's paediatric department and medical advice can be obtained at short notice.

* Women who need a transfer to the high-tech maternity unit in Darlington are transferred by a 999 ambulance.

Reassuringly for the new unit, which began operating earlier this month, only two women have cancelled deliveries since the tragedy.

Health bosses pushed through changes to the maternity unit at Bishop Auckland despite widespread opposition.

Two years ago, concerns about safety were voiced at a series of public meetings to discuss the proposed changes.

But Mr Aitken said there could be no return to a consultant-led maternity unit at Bishop Auckland.

He said that the changes at Bishop Auckland were part of a wider configuration of hospital services in County Durham.

These changes were unavoidable because of the need to meet medical training standards and to reduce doctor working hours.

"Unless we reconfigured services, the result would have been the removal of maternity services from both sites. Women would have had to go to Middlesbrough to have their babies," said Mr Aitken.

Debbie Bunford, head of midwifery, said: "I can't think of anything that would occur in the department that the midwives could not deal with because of their extra training."

To reassure women, the trust is checking the records of every woman booked to have their child at Bishop Auckland to ensure that this is the correct option for them.

Hospital bosses are also inviting any women who would like to see the unit for themselves and talk to a midwife to ring (01388) 455108.

A Department of Health spokesman said: "Women should feel confident about midwife-led maternity units. They provide women with a comfortable, low-tech environment for having a baby."