Maternity unit where I lost my son must close, insists mother

A SCANDAL-HIT maternity unit should be closed, says a mother whose baby died at the hospital.

Hayley Matthews’s son Jack Burn was born at the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford on Mar 15 2015, but died hours later.

Jack’s case is one of 104 being reviewed by NHS Improvement following allegations that staff errors at Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust (SATH) between 2000 and 2017 caused harm to mothers and babies.

The trust was told last week to pass hundreds of records to the regulator after it asked for details of all maternity incidents from 1998-2017, raising fears more families could be affected.

As well as the review, the Care Quality Commission is taking urgent action after it identified problems with care, especially in high-risk pregnancies.

SATH said it was co-operating with the regulator and CQC and that it welcomed the investigation of other cases.

“I want that maternity unit [at the Princess Royal Hospital] closed down,” says Miss Matthews, now 32, who was left for 36 hours at the hospital before being induced. “They shoved me in a room on my own and forgot about me,” she said. “I had to keep getting up to ask for help.”

During labour, Jack’s shoulder became trapped and his heart rate shot up to to 185bpm, but the midwife said everything was fine and delayed calling for a doctor. “By the time he was born,” Miss Matthews said, “he was severely brain-dead due to lack of oxygen.” Jack died hours later.