Twins’ mum died after Caesarean by trainee
A MOTHER died before she could hold her newborn twins following a caesarean by a trainee surgeon, an inquest heard yesterday.
rosida etwaree, 45, lost more than 6.5 pints of blood as the girls were delivered at Mayday Hospital in Croydon, south London.
The inquest heard that the caesarean was recommended because Mrs etwaree was already a mother of four and had potentially fatal pre-eclampsia. One of the unborn twins, Nabilah, also had a heart condition.
But during the operation in June 2010, trainee surgeon Dr Latika Narang struggled to close the uterus due to a heavy placenta bleed.
Consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist Britt Clausson stepped in to finish the operation but then left the operating theatre, Croydon Coroner’s Court was told yesterday.
The operating team calculated that Mrs etwaree had lost around 3.5 pints (two litres) of blood, which was replaced before she was stabilised and moved to a recovery ward.
But Dr Narang later found the amount she had lost was almost double this, at 6.5 pints (3.75 litres), which she claims to have left in her handover notes for the medical team taking on Mrs etwaree’s care.
Dr Narang had to leave before the handover doctor had arrived, but she also claims to have told consultant anaesthetist Dr Neelam Chitkara about the extent of the blood loss.
However, Dr Chitkara told the inquest: ‘I do not remember that conversation. If I was told that it was nearly four litres, I would have done something. Unfortunately, nothing like that happened.’
Three hours later, Mrs etwaree suffered two cardiac arrests caused by the internal bleeding. After the first she was resuscitated but the second proved fatal. She was one of five mothers to die in childbirth at the hospital, now called Croydon University Hospital, in 2010.
Dr Narang, who trained in India and has worked in Britain since 2003, said: ‘There was bleeding. I knew I should call for help. Ms Clausson arrived pretty quickly. Ms Clausson started repairing the first layer and after the first layer was done the bleeding seemed to have stopped.’
On the witness stand, Dr Narang was accused by lawyer Ben rich, who is representing Dr Chitkara, of not telling senior staff about the loss of blood. He said: ‘You did not in fact refer the blood loss to anyone senior at all. My suggestion is you are struggling about when you told Dr Chitkara because you did not tell her.’
In 2014 Croydon Health Services NHS Trust admitted liability for Mrs etwaree’s death from a catalogue of ‘atrocious’ failures. The trust agreed to pay her husband Ahamud an undisclosed settlement.
‘I knew I should call for help’