NHS trust ‘tampered with evidence’ after death of Call the Midwife actor’s son
Coroner considers taking case to CPS over claim that lawyers edited hospital worker’s statement
A CORONER halted an inquest into the death of a Call the Midwife actor’s baby son amid claims that the NHS tampered with evidence, which could result in criminal charges.
Benjamin King, son of actor Jamie King, died from severe brain damage five days after being born by emergency caesarean section on May 5.
He was starved of oxygen for two hours before his birth at the Royal United Hospital in Bath, Somerset, after the placenta failed.
His mother, Tamara Podemski, 39, a Canadian actress, had been due to have a caesarean procedure at the hospital the previous day but it was postponed.
The couple decided to turn off Benjamin’s life support on May 10 after be- ing told the child would probably grow up with severe disabilities, epilepsy and have a small head. An investigation found that delaying the operation was the wrong decision.
Maria Voisin, the Avon coroner, halted the inquest after being told that lawyers for the NHS trust involved allegedly removed crucial evidence from a midwife’s statement. Ms Voisin said she may refer the case to the Crown Prosecution Service.
After the case was adjourned, Mr King, 35, who appeared in series two of
Call the Midwife and also in The Tudors, said he was “horrified” by the allegations of tampering.
He claimed the NHS had a “blatant disregard for the truth”, adding: “This delay not only postpones any resolution that we were hoping for but also significantly prolongs our suffering.”
The inquest in Bristol heard how Eileen Dack, the labour ward co-ordinator, had questioned why the caesarean was delayed.
She recalled talking to the on-duty registrar, who felt it should have gone ahead as planned.
When asked why there was no documentation of the conversation, she told the coroner it was “removed from my statement” by the trust’s legal team.
Ms Voisin said the alleged removal on behalf of the RUH Bath NHS Foundation Trust was a “very serious matter” and may amount to perverting the course of justice.
Helen Blanchard, director of nursing and midwifery for the trust, said it would “co-operate fully”.
A spokesman for the Avon Coroner’s Office yesterday said Ms Voisin had not yet referred the case to the prosecutors but was “considering all the information”.