NHS did not keep us safe, says midwife after death of her baby
Medic tells of anger at her ex-colleagues after infant starved of oxygen during emergency Caesarean
A MIDWIFE whose son died 14 days after he was born by emergency Caesarean section has accused her former NHS colleagues of “not keeping us safe”.
Robyn Davis, 28, told an inquest of the “sickening feeling” of not being listened to despite repeatedly telling midwives “something is wrong”.
She said she felt “anger and complete heartbreak” toward Worthing Hospital, where she “never felt safe” before being given an emergency Caesarean and placed into an induced coma.
Her son Orlando was born at the hospital, part of University Hospitals Sussex NHS Trust, on Sept 10 2021, but died 14 days later from a brain injury after being starved of oxygen during his birth, the inquest in Chichester was told.
Mrs Davis had worked at the hospital as a midwife for almost half a year but left owing to the “stress, poor staffing and lack of support” in the maternity unit. She had planned to give birth at home, but was admitted when complications arose.
“In truth, I never felt safe … as health care professional faces kept changing constantly,” she told the inquest yesterday.
“The care I received appears to be negligent in multiple ways – constant changes in midwives, lack of handovers.
“I feel myself and my son were robbed of opportunity and life and I never felt safe. I feel fearful for those in maternity care and whether they are in safe hands.”
Mrs Davis told the coroner she had originally opted for a home birth with a birthing pool following the advice of her midwife, as her pregnancy was categorised as “low risk”.
She said she was not listened to by the midwives when she raised concerns about her fluid intake and the position of the baby.
“I proceeded to keep saying, ‘Something is wrong.’ It felt like I was trapped, that, although I knew I was declining so rapidly, I was unable to think how I could help myself, such as asking to go to hospital,” she said.
On the way to the hospital, Mrs Davis began to suffer from seizures. She was placed into an induced coma and her son was delivered by Caesarean, but when she awoke three days later she found out the baby was “catastrophically ill”.
“I could not stop crying and having panic attacks. I could not understand that Orlando was this catastrophically ill
‘The care appears to be negligent in multiple ways – changes in midwives, lack of handovers’
that he was going to die,” she said.
“I can’t explain the sadness, frustration, anger and complete heartbreak I felt and still feel towards the Trust for not keeping us safe.”
She said she had been “haunted psychologically” at having watched her son die, and added: “My life is ruined because of this.
“In my personal and professional opinion, [it] was completely preventable. This is agony to live with. This is because I can’t help but relive the moments of constantly expressing something wasn’t right during labour multiple times.
“It is also a sickening feeling that no one picked up on how poorly I was for hours and hours despite expressing it.”
Mrs Davis and her husband Jonny are also suing the hospital in a separate
‘It is also sickening no one picked up on how poorly I was for hours’
case. Laura Cook, of CL Medilaw, a birth injury claims specialist, is representing the couple at the inquest.
She said before the hearing: “This was a completely normal and healthy pregnancy that ended so tragically. Records seen to date show what appears to be a basic lack of safe maternity care provided by this Trust.” Maggie Davies, the Trust’s chief nurse, said before the inquest began: “We wish to offer our heartfelt condolences to Orlando’s family at this hugely difficult time.
“We will be doing all we can to assist the coroner and the family to understand the circumstances surrounding the tragic loss of their baby boy.”
The inquest continues.