Baby dies after poor medical practices

An inquest into the death of a baby was held after his mother gave birth to him in the toilet soon after she and her husband were sent home from the Royal Cornwall hospital. Many mothers in Essex may be familiar with some of the warning signs of sepsis in newborn babies. These were ignored by midwives and the infant died a few hours later. The mother said she felt that she was brushed off by staff at the maternity ward and that the errors by medical personnel led to her baby’s death.

Two midwives visited the couple’s home on two separate occasions in the hours after the baby was born. The inquest heard from a consultant midwife who reviewed the events leading up to baby’s death. In her opinion the baby received poor midwifery care and should have been tested and transferred to hospital where the infection would have been detected and treatment for sepsis given.

She said that any indication that a neworn might be suffering from sepsis should have led the attending midwife to take the baby’s temperature and measure the heart and breathing rates. A second midwife who visited realised the baby was sick but failed to dial 999 for an ambulance, a procedure that even a novice midwife should have been aware of according to the consultant. The baby boy stopped breathing and in spite of CPR died, 30 hours after being born.

Signs of sepsis can include rapid breathing, grunting, lethargy and convulsions and parents are advised to call 999 if they detect these symptoms in their child. If qualified medical staff ignore these signs and their lack of action leads to the death of a child, a solicitor who has experience in medical professional negligence cases may be able to offer legal assistance.