Newcastle trust admits care failure after unborn baby’s death

A hospital trust in Newcastle has admitted that a baby would have survived if her mother had not been discharged while suffering from pre-eclampsia. Danielle Brown, whose daughter Maisie died before birth, said she was subsequently sent home with bereavement information and instructed to arrange a time to deliver her baby.

Brown, 31, from North Shields in north-east England, described her experience after receiving an undisclosed settlement from Newcastle upon Tyne hospitals NHS foundation trust. The trust acknowledged a breach of duty relating to her initial discharge and accepted that Maisie would have lived had Brown remained in hospital.

In February 2023, Brown was seven months pregnant when she became unwell and received a diagnosis of pre-eclampsia, a pregnancy complication that can threaten life. Doctors monitoring her at Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary also identified concerns about Maisie’s heart rate. A consultant obstetrician recommended that Brown stay in hospital until the birth because of her condition.

After another consultant reviewed her care, however, Brown was discharged on 14 February, 24 hours after the recommendation that she remain. The following day, she called the hospital’s maternity assessment unit because she was concerned about further symptoms. She was advised that a stomach bug was the likely explanation.

Brown insisted on an assessment and went back to the hospital, where she waited 90 minutes before being seen. Staff were unable to locate Maisie’s heartbeat, and Brown and her partner, Anthony Miller, were told their daughter had died. Brown said nobody explained what had happened to Maisie and described the distress of returning home while still carrying her baby.

Rather than giving birth immediately, Brown said she received a booklet intended for bereaved parents and was told to book a delivery for another day. She said the lack of compassion made her angry. After saying goodbye to Maisie, the couple also had to pass through a labour ward where other parents were leaving with their babies, an experience Brown said would remain with her.

Faisal Ali, of the law firm Irwin Mitchell, said pre-eclampsia required careful monitoring and that the case demonstrated the consequences of failures in care. He said the firm represented hundreds of families across the country affected by maternity failings and argued that persistent problems in services were placing mothers and babies at risk.

Brown and Miller have since welcomed a son, Harrison, who is two. Brown said their happiness at having him existed alongside the pain of Maisie’s absence. She called for improvements in maternity care and more compassionate support for families after something goes wrong.

Ian Joy, an executive director at the trust, apologised and acknowledged that parts of Brown’s care had fallen below the standards her family was entitled to expect. He said a detailed review in 2023 led to improvements in urgent assessments for women presenting with unexpected symptoms or suspected complications. Joy also said the trust had recently received a positive assessment against national standards.