Nottingham Maternity Hospital fined over baby’s death

Baby Wynter Andrews

After the Care Quality Commission (CQC) brought charges, NUH was fined £800,000 last week after it admitted failing in the care of a baby who died 23 minutes after her birth. Wynter Andrews was born at the Queen’s Medical Centre, but a catalogue of failings meant that Mrs Andrews and her baby missed vital opportunities to receive the expected levels of care.

An earlier inquest found that baby Wynter died from hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy, which is a loss of oxygen flow to the brain, and that this could have been prevented if the staff had delivered her earlier.

District Judge Grace Leong at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court heard evidence that the maternity unit was busy, there was a shortage of staff and Mrs Andrews had been misdiagnosed as to what phase of labour she was in and a concern about a possible infection was not picked up. In addition, Mrs Andrews’ patient history was not handed over properly to other staff at shift change, and, the provision of additional monitoring of the baby’s wellbeing including taking any necessary action had simply not happened.

Significant risk of harm

Passing sentence on Friday, the district judge said: “The catalogue of failings and errors exposed Mrs Andrews and her baby to a significant risk of harm which was avoidable, and such errors ultimately resulted in the death of Wynter and post-traumatic stress for Mrs Andrews and Mr Andrews.”

Commenting on the sentence Mr & Mrs Andrews said “We hope that the fine sends a clear message to the trust managers that they must hold patient safety in the highest regard. Sadly, we are not the only family harmed by the Trust’s failings. We feel that this sentence isn’t just for Wynter, but it’s for all the babies who have gone before and after her.”

Safer maternity services needed

Haidee Vedy, Senior Solicitor Medical Negligence and Personal Injury at Alsters Kelley Solicitors, said. “The fine is the largest handed out to an NHS trust over maternity care. Indeed it was reduced from £1.2 million due to the Trust’s admission of guilt. Its size demonstrates the seriousness of the Trust’s failings and highlights the rapid improvements needed to improve maternity services in Nottingham.”

Haidee continues. “What’s clear from this ruling is that the maternity service experienced by Mr and Mrs Andrews fell far short of the quality expected to keep mother and baby safe. At Alsters Kelley we continue to be instructed by families in cases where incidents of unsafe maternity care have occurred. We hope that the publicity brought by this criminal prosecution helps to promote proper change for safer maternity services across the country.”

Independent Review

Of course, many of you will know that NUH has already hit the headlines for other reasons. In September last year, Donna Ockenden was appointed as Chair of the new independent review into maternity services at Nottingham’s City Hospital and Queen’s Medical Centre (QMC).

Largest maternity scandal

Donna and her team are currently looking at cases dating back to 2012 and there are fears that the NHS could be facing its largest maternity scandal to date as the review into services in Nottingham is now expected to exceed 1,500 cases. Initially 700 families came forward to highlight their experiences which resulted in hundreds of babies having died or being left with serious injuries or brain damage. However, only last week 1000 additional letters were sent to other families who may have been similarly affected.

The review will take 18 months and it is estimated the final report will be published in March 2024. It is hoped that the findings will ensure the safety of mums and babies in the care of Nottingham University Hospitals with all recommendations being made quickly.

Free initial meeting for support and advice

At Alsters Kelley, our approach is personal, sensitive, and caring. We understand you may have already suffered harm in the hands of those you put your trust in, which is why we put you at the heart of everything we do. With years of experience, we aim to minimise the impact of the claims process and secure the compensation you may be entitled to.

If you have any concerns about the treatment either you and your baby received and would like help or advice, please contact Haidee Vedy on 01926 356000 or email haidee.vedy@alsterskelley.com