Baby died after mum's C-section was delayed by nine hours following car crash
Kirsty Birkenshaw, 34, told how she lost her baby because hospital staff at Hinchingbrooke Hospital, Cambridgeshire, didn't monitor her properly.
Kirsty Birkenshaw, 34, lost her baby Scarlett after being involved in a crash.
North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust admitted a breach of duty.
Kirsty is now speaking for the first time about her loss ahead of Baby Loss Awareness Week.
A devastated mum has told how she lost her baby because hospital staff didn't monitor her properly after she was involved in a car crash.
Kirsty Birkenshaw, 34, said her concerns were ignored in A&E at Hinchingbrooke Hospital, Cambridgeshire, prior to an emergency caesarean.
She had been experiencing growing abdominal pain and reduced movement of her unborn baby Scarlett after being involved in a car crash when she was 30 weeks pregnant.
But after a check-up Kirsty was discharged from hospital on 9 August, 2021.
On the evening of 11 August, she returned to A&E experiencing similar symptoms.
The next morning on the labour ward it was discovered Scarlett had an abnormal heartbeat and was struggling to breathe.
Staff shortages meant she wasn't monitored in the hours leading up to her caesarean.
As a result, Scarlett was delivered nine hours later than she should have been when her problems finally became apparent.
She was put on a ventilator and transferred to a specialist baby unit and then a specialist hospital, but it was too late, and she died five days later.
North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Hinchingbrooke Hospital, admitted a breach of duty.
Kirsty from March, Cambridge, said: "My pregnancy seemed to be going pretty smoothly and there weren’t too many concerns until the crash.
“I was in pain and was concerned Scarlett wasn’t moving as much, so we thought the best thing would be to go to hospital and get checked out.
“Even after I was sent home something didn’t feel right.
"When I was re-admitted I kept mentioning my concerns and that I hadn’t felt Scarlett move for some time.
"I appreciate the hospital was busy, but it felt like my concerns weren’t really listened to.
“It felt like things only started to progress when Scarlett’s heart was monitored but by then it was too late.”
Kirsty, a mum-of-three, added: “The hurt and pain we feel now over Scarlett’s death is as raw now as it was when she was taken from us.
"There’s not a day goes by when we don’t think of her."
Breach of duty
Kirsty originally attended A&E after she was involved in a road traffic accident with her partner Ricky Dickinson, 34.
She was discharged but readmitted a few days later after fearing she hadn't felt Scarlett move for hours.
That night the labour ward said it would perform computerised monitoring of Scarlett’s heart rate when Kirsty was on a labour ward the next morning.
They wrongly believed the machines wouldn’t work in A&E because they weren’t mobile.
The ward also initially said it couldn’t send a midwife to see Kirsty in A&E because of staff shortages.
At around 10.20am on 12 August, when she was finally monitored, readings indicated Scarlett had an abnormal heart rate and was being starved of oxygen.
She was delivered by category two caesarean just after 12.10pm.
Scarlett developed breathing problems and was put on a ventilator.
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She was transferred to the special care baby unit and then to a specialist hospital for treatment.
However, she died aged five days from a brain injury caused by lack of oxygen and respiratory distress syndrome.
Following Scarlett’s death Kirsty and Ricky instructed expert medical negligence lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate.
North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Hinchingbrooke Hospital, admitted a breach of duty.
It admitted that had Kirsty undergone obstetric review earlier, on the balance of probabilities, monitoring of Scarlett’s heart would have shown signs of reduced movement.
A decision to deliver by category two caesarean would have been made by 2.15am on 12 August, with Scarlett delivered by 3.30am – nearly 10 hours before she was.
If Scarlett had been delivered by 3.30am, she would have been in a better condition and would have survived, the Trust admitted through its lawyers.
Abigail Salter, the specialist medical negligence lawyer at Irwin Mitchell representing Kirsty, said: "It’s now vital that lessons are learned to improve maternity safety and help prevent other families having to endure the pain Kirsty and Ricky are going through.
"We continue to support the couple at this upsetting time and are working with the Hospital Trust so Kirsty and Ricky can access the specialist support and therapies they require following Scarlett’s death.”
Baby Loss Awareness Week
Ahead of Baby Loss Awareness Week Kirsty is now speaking for the first time about her loss and joining her legal team in campaigning to improve maternity safety.
Kirsty added: “All we can do now is share what happened to us to make others aware.
"By speaking out we just hope lessons can be learned as we wouldn’t wish what we’re going through on anyone.
“People who’ve experienced baby loss also shouldn’t have to suffer alone as help and support is available.
Following Scarlett’s death, Kirsty has been supported by the Cambridgeshire charity Petals, which helps families affected by baby loss.
Baby Loss Awareness Week is an annual event that takes place from 9-15 October.
It is an opportunity for parents, families, and friends to remember and commemorate babies who have died during pregnancy, at birth, or shortly after birth.
