'Hospital gave me leaflet when I raised concern - 5 days later my baby was dead'

08 August 2023 , 11:01

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'Hospital gave me leaflet when I raised concern - 5 days later my baby was dead'

A couple whose baby was stillborn say they were dismissed with a leaflet after telling the hospital she wasn't moving five days earlier.

In 2021 expectant mother Emily Hart, 26, headed to Royal Berkshire Hospital complaining of pain and lack of movement from her baby when she was 39 weeks. However despite tests she and partner Liam Ingram, 27, were sent home with a labour advice leaflet.

The couple, based in Reading at the time, say medical staff carried out heart rate monitor tests and an examination but despite Liam pleading three times for Emily to be induced, the couple were sent home six hours later on July 21. Four days later, Emily experienced pains again but was advised to stay at home after a telephone assessment. After a second phone call she was finally admitted to hospital 12 hours later, but medics could not hear the baby's heartbeat.

After carrying out scans, Emily and Liam were told their baby had died on July 26. Emily was induced and delivered baby Luna about 15 hours later. The shattered couple instructed Irwin Mitchell lawyers to investigate their care under Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust.

Luna was stillborn (Irwin Mitchell)

Luna's baby scan (Irwin Mitchell)

The Trust has since admitted to a breach of duty for not offering Emily an obstetric review to discuss being induced before they were sent home. They claimed that if a review was offered and accepted, Luna could have been delivered earlier and survived. According to Irwin Mitchell, the couple received an undisclosed settlement from the Trust to help them access specialist support over their loss.

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The couple have since moved to Bilston, near Wolverhampton, to be closer to Liam's family. Emily said: "Liam and I were so excited and spoke at length about what we'd do when Luna was born. We were the most well-prepared parents. We had a pram, a pushchair, a crib and a Moses basket, all ready for Luna. I had bought six big boxes full of baby clothes and the entire nursery was kitted out.

"We had bottles, formula, nappies, wipes and cleaners, everything you could possibly need. I was concerned that Luna wasn’t moving as much as she had so we thought the thing would be to go to hospital and get checked out. As well as being worried about Luna's reduced movements, I was in quite a lot of pain, so we asked if it was possible for me to be induced. However, we were told no as it would be detrimental to Luna's health, although we were not told why.

Emily and Luna welcomed their son Ruben in November (Irwin Mitchell)

"We were told everything would be fine and I was sent home. It felt like we were just dismissed as we were young parents. When we went back to hospital nothing prepared us for finding out that Luna had died. We were absolutely devastated and having to give birth to Luna was traumatic. Afterwards I spent five days in hospital and we treasured what time we got to spend with Luna. All we wanted to do was bring Luna home with us. Having to leave hospital and her behind was heartbreaking."

Last year the couple were given reason to smile when Emily gave birth to son Ruben. Liam said: "We feel so blessed to have Ruben in our lives but it remains difficult not to think how Luna should be at home with us, growing and developing and creating mischief with her little brother. We'd give anything to turn back the clock and for things to be different but we know that's not possible. All we can do now is share what happened to us to make other parents aware. By speaking out we just hope lessons can be learned as we wouldn't wish what we're going through on anyone."

A Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust spokeswoman told Birmingham Live: “We offer our very sincere apologies to Ms Hart and Mr Ingram for the very sad loss of their baby Luna. We have conducted a wide-ranging investigation into the events leading up to this tragic event and reviewed our staff training and practices accordingly. We have also worked closely with Ms Hart and Mr Ingram’s legal representatives to assure them of our commitment to providing people with the best possible care.”

Kelly-Ann Mills