Rogue midwife drugged 15 women ‘for easier job’
A MIDWIFE has been found guilty of deliberately drugging 15 pregnant women in an apparent attempt to make her work easier.
Kirsteen Stewart gave them a l abour- inducing drug which caused their babies’ heartbeats to drop dangerously low.
The cases took place between November 2007 and March 2010 at Aberdeen Maternity Hospital.
All but two of the women had to undergo emergency Caesarean sections after being given Syntocinon. No babies died but two had to be resuscitated at birth.
Stewart, of Newmachar, Aberdeenshire, was yesterday found guilty by a Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) panel following an earlier hearing.
The NMC will today decide if she is no longer fit to practice. This would ban her from working as a midwife or nurse anywhere in the UK. Police investigated the allegations in 2010 but no charges were brought.
Charlene Fordyce, who had an emergency Caesarean while in Mrs Stewart’s care, last night spoke of her relief at the hearing’s outcome.
The 28-year- old, from Shetland was warned her baby, Kerryn, was at risk of brain damage following the operation. The little girl spent two days in the hospital’s neonatal unit before making a full recovery.
Miss Fordyce said: ‘I think I’ll only have closure if she is properly prosecuted for her actions, but if she is struck off then I will be glad she won’t be able to harm anyone else.’
Michael Collis, case presenter for the NMC, told yesterday’s hearing: ‘Thirteen of the 15 mothers underwent Caesarean sections as a result of the registrant’s actions. The only logical explanation that has been put forward as to why [she] might have behaved in this way is a desire to speed up the women’s time in labour in order to serve the registrant’s own interests.’
He added: ‘It is submitted by the NMC that [this] undoubtedly represents a serious departure from the acceptable standards of a registered midwife. By behaving in such a way, and apparently prioritising her own interests over the interests of her patients and their unborn children, the registrant has breached one of the fundamental tenets of the profession [which] has undoubtedly been brought into disrepute by the registrant’s conduct.’
Earlier in the hearing, consultant Dr Tara Fairley said Syntocinon should only be prescribed by a doctor. ‘If too much is administered then it would make the uterus contract very firmly, which deprives the baby of oxygen,’ she explained.
‘This means that they may require emergency delivery and they could suffer from a brain injury, cerebral palsy or even death.’
The NMC admitted it had no direct evidence that Stewart administered the drug but said its case depended on the ‘remarkable trend of women who experienced problems’ following her involvement.
NHS Grampian declined to comment until sanctions are decided by the NMC.
Stewart, 48, was not present or represented at the hearing. She claimed during an earlier probe that the cases were simply ‘bad luck’.
A Crown Office spokesman said: ‘The Crown reserves the right to proceed in the future should further evidence become available.’
‘Brain injury or
even death’