The review also unearthed evidence that many of the 29 internal hospital investigations into the deaths - termed Serious Incident Requiring Investigations reports (SIRIs) - were not entirely frank.
The panel only agreed with 12 out of the 29, with the other 17 "felt to be substandard, with poor application of the SIRI process, incorrect conclusions and failure to recognise the root cause of the incident".
Internal reports into six deaths found them "inevitable", but the panel disagreed.
"Different management and earlier diagnosis could have changed the outcomes," found the review.
It went on: "In some cases the reports overlooked significant organisational or clinical factors, including inappropriate treatment and behaviour of clinicians."
Lack of enough midwives was not the only problem; lack of proper supervision of more junior doctors was a "major contributor" in nine deaths.
Panorama also found that, nationwide, maternity units were closed 1,055 times in 2010, mainly due to under-staffing or lack of beds.
The problem was most acute in London, with Barnet Hospital closing its unit 102 times.
The south east also has the biggest shortage of midwives. In some trusts one in five posts is vacant, compared with less than one in 20 (4.7 per cent) across England.
Cathy Warwick, general secretary of the Royal College of Midwives, said England needed 4,700 more midwives to cope with the "tidal wave of births that has engulfed maternity services over the past decade".
The numbers of births had risen 22 per cent since 2001, she noted.
Paul Burstow, the Health Minister, told the programme: "Safety is paramount in the NHS and all mothers and their babies should expect and receive consistently excellent maternity care.
"There is a record number of midwives entering training this year and the number of consultants in obstetrics and gynaecology has increased from two years ago.
"We will continue to work with the Royal College of Midwives to make sure we have an appropriately resourced and skilled maternity workforce based on the most up-to-date evidence."
*Panorama is broadcast tonight (MON) at 8.30pm on BBC One.
Article Source KBG Test Blog (http://rc.kbg.me)
