THREE babies starved of oxygen died within hours of their births due to “defects in the system”, a top judge has found.
Law chief Aisha Anwar told how the losses of tragic Leo Lamont, Ellie McCormick and Mira-Belle Bosch “might realistically have been avoided” if NHS maternity medics had urged their mothers to attend hospitals when they desperately rang for help.
Sheriff Principal Anwar oversaw a fatal accident inquiry into the deaths[/caption]
Leo’s mum — who had a history of preterm delivery — was told to take painkillers for back pain just 101 minutes before he was born on her bathroom floor just 27 weeks into her pregnancy.
Ellie suffered fatal brain damage after her mother phoned the health service when contractions started and was also told to take pills and call back if she was “not coping”.
Leo was two hours old when he died at University Hospital Monklands on February 15 2019, and Ellie was five hours old when she died at Wishaw General Hospital, Lanarkshire, on March 5 the same year.
Mira-Belle was aged 12 hours and one minute when she died on July 2 2021 at Wishaw General Hospital.
Her mum was sent home from hospital after her waters broke and had to call an ambulance when the tot arrived feet-first — as five frantic phone calls from paramedics to a mat ward went unanswered.
Sheriff Principal Anwar oversaw a fatal accident inquiry into the deaths of the three babies and found a catalogue of failures.
Mira-Belle’s devastated mum Rozelle Bosch revealed her pain in evidence during the hearings.
She said: “I knew that her nine month old life had come to an end and the journey we had hoped to walk with her had ended.
“The clothes which we had brought to take her home with would become the clothes which she would wear to the mortuary.”
Sheriff Principal Anwar said: “The death of a child is an unimaginable and deeply painful event in any parent’s life; one from which it is undoubtedly difficult to recover.
“What ought to have been a time of celebration for the parents and families who awaited the births of Leo, Ellie and Mira-Belle, turned to one of sorrow and tragedy.
“The purpose of this Inquiry is to understand what happened and what might be done in future to avoid such tragedy.
“I again offer my deepest condolences to the parents of Leo, Ellie and Mira-Belle.
“Each gave evidence with great dignity and sought to assist the Inquiry notwithstanding the anguish and heartache each has suffered.”
The report makes 11 recommendations, including the drawing-up of a “trigger list” for identifying preterm labour symptoms, and the introduction of a dedicated telephone line to give ambulance service staff direct access to maternity units.
It also recommends that women are given an “approximate timeframe” in which to call back when told to see if symptoms improve after taking painkillers, as well as recommending improvements in the way information is recorded on hospital systems.
