Hospital apologises after mother was sent home before and after baby’s death

Danielle Brown, from North Shields, was nearly 29 weeks pregnant when she was transferred to Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary in February 2023. She had pre-eclampsia, a serious pregnancy complication, and monitoring had raised concerns about her daughter Maisie’s heart rate.

Brown said a consultant told her she needed to stay in hospital until the birth. But another doctor reviewed her and she was discharged on 14 February.

The next day, she called the maternity unit because she felt unwell. Brown said she was told she probably had a stomach bug but insisted on being seen. After returning to hospital, she and her partner, Anthony Miller, were told Maisie had died.

Brown said she was then sent home with a bereavement booklet and told to call on Friday morning to book a time to give birth. “Hearing that with no compassion angered me so much,” she said. She returned to hospital and gave birth to Maisie on 17 February, after ten hours of labour.

Irwin Mitchell, Brown’s solicitors, said Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust admitted she should not have been discharged on either 14 or 15 February. The firm said the trust had accepted that Maisie would have survived had Brown remained in hospital during her first admission, and had paid an undisclosed settlement.

Waiting before giving birth after a baby has died can be appropriate in some circumstances. Guidance from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in place at the time said decisions should take account of the mother’s health and wishes. It strongly advised immediate steps towards delivery where a woman had pre-eclampsia, while allowing a more flexible approach where specified complications were absent.

Ian Joy, the trust’s executive director of nursing and midwifery, said it accepted that aspects of Brown’s care fell short and offered the family a “heartfelt apology”. He said that after a review in 2023, the trust improved urgent assessment for women with unexpected symptoms or suspected complications and introduced quicker procedures for escalating concerns.

Brown and Miller are calling for better bereavement support, including an alternative way out of hospital for grieving parents. After saying goodbye to Maisie, Brown said, they had to walk past parents leaving with their babies. “That will stay with me forever,” she said.