Farleys’ medical negligence team was approached by Mr and Mrs P who had suffered the tragic loss of their new-born baby due to negligence at the hospital she gave birth at.

Background

Ms P was 38+2 weeks pregnant with her first child when she attended hospital complaining of uterine contractions/tightenings every 6 minutes and was admitted for observation. She was not referred for obstetric review despite being hypertensive and tachycardic with an elevated Modified Early Obstetric Warning Score (“MEOWS”) of 4, fetal heart rate tachycardia and identification of slowing of fetal growth on admission. She was not referred for a cardiotocography (CTG) or to the on-call obstetrician for a management plan. She was instead sent home.

Three days later, Ms P was transported to hospital in suspected advanced labour. A short while later, she gave birth to a baby girl who was unfortunately very unwell and was unable to breathe on her own. Despite numerous efforts to assist the baby to breathe on her own, the medical professionals were sadly unsuccessful and Ms P’s baby passed away.

How Farleys Were Able to Help

Mr and Mrs P and their family were understandably devastated about the loss of their new-born baby and sought answers and redress for the mistakes that were made.

Mr and Mrs P instructed Nick Molyneux of Farleys Solicitors to act on their behalf in a claim against the hospital trust for medical negligence which caused the tragic death of their baby.

The hospital trust admitted that, when Ms P had initially attended the hospital, an immediate referral to an obstetrician should have been made and had that been the case, on the balance of probabilities, her baby’s life would have been saved.

Ms P had developed significant psychological injuries as a result of her experience. Nick and his team instructed medical experts to assess the psychological impact of the incident on Ms P and any future treatment she may require to come to terms with the traumatic loss of her baby.

Nick submitted a claim which included a personal injury claim for Ms P, a claim on behalf of her baby’s estate, and a claim on behalf of herself as a dependent under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976. Court proceedings were issued and Nick negotiated a settlement for Ms P through NHS Resolution.

We successfully secured £50,000 which covered, among other things:

  • CBT therapy for Ms P

  • Funeral expenses and probate costs

  • Past losses in the form of baby items

  • A bereavement award.

During the claim process, funding was secured for Ms P to begin CBT therapy before the claim was settled.

Nick Molyneux commented,

This was an incredibly sad case where the death of a new-born baby could have been avoided. In cases like these, we know that no amount of money will truly be enough but we hope that this settlement will allow Ms P to access the treatment she needs to come to terms with her loss in her own time and provide a sense of closure for her and her family.

Contact a Medical Negligence Specialist

If you or your baby have been injured during labour due to negligence or the negligent treatment has resulted in the loss of your baby, speak to our experts at Farleys in confidence about the next steps you can take. For a no-obligation discussion about your case, please call 0845 287 0939 or contact us by email.