Two hospitals' ratings for their maternity services have been downgraded due to a troubled trust being accused of having a toxic culture.
The service at Birmingham Heartlands Hospital was deemed inadequate by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), and a warning notice was issued.
Good Hope Hospital in Sutton Coldfield's service "requires improvement" right now.
Improvements have been made, according to University Hospitals Birmingham.
The trust, one of the biggest NHS trusts in England, has come under fire for persistent bullying cases and a toxic workplace that were exposed in a report by Prof. Mike Bewick that was released in March.
It was discovered in December that whistleblowers at the trust had claimed a culture of fear among staff was endangering patients as a result of a joint investigation by BBC West Midlands and Newsnight.
After both hospitals' maternity departments underwent an inspection in February, the CQC issued a warning notice urging the trust to concentrate its efforts "on swiftly making the necessary improvements" at Heartlands.
The CQC stated that the maternity service there lacked the necessary staff to provide for women's needs and keep them safe.
Parts of the environment were "not fit for purpose due to a lack of sufficient and suitable waiting space for women and people giving birth," according to the watchdog.
According to its report, patients were occasionally not evaluated promptly in the pregnancy assessment emergency room, putting people's safety "at risk.".
According to the CQC, the trust reported instances of care and treatment delays over the previous year, and managers did not always conduct thorough investigations.
The maternity services, however, "engaged well with women and giving birth people within the diverse community, particularly with regard to Female Genital Mutilation. in addition to a specialized bereavement service.
Along with the well-led rating for maternity at Good Hope, the ratings for safety and leadership at the Heartlands service both dropped to inadequate levels.
There was maternity-specific training offered by the service, but it wasn't always ensured that everyone had finished it, and the performance management systems "were not always used effectively.".
The NHS Foundation Trust said in a statement that although the service was facing significant challenges in areas highlighted by the inspection, it had worked to make improvements.
These included "improvements to staffing of the area" and expanding the emergency room for pregnancy assessments.
A spokesperson continued, "This is in addition to the Princess of Wales Women's Unit's ongoing £4.7 million renovation.
A newly appointed Director of Midwifery will oversee the continuation of these improvements. ".
The trust expressed its happiness that the CQC had identified areas of good practice.
The watchdog claimed to have observed how well staff members interacted with charities and that at Good Hope call bells were easily accessible and staff members were quick to answer when contacted.
