Mother 'pleaded' with doctors before her baby died

7 hours ago

Mark NormanBBC South East Health Correspondent

News image — Bereaved mother Liz Charlton said her needs were not understood or acted upon

Mark Norman/BBC Liz Charlton, sitting on a sofa in her home, looking serious, during a conversation with BBC health correspondent Mark Norman. To her right, there is a doorway into her kitchen and a tall, silver fridge can be seen. — Bereaved mother Liz Charlton said her needs were not understood or acted upon

A bereaved mother has said warning signs during her fertility journey and subsequent pregnancy were "repeatedly ignored" before her baby was stillborn.

Liz Charlton has spoken publicly for the first time about "maternity failings" that she believes led to the death of her daughter, Hazel, on 14 July, 2021, at Worthing Hospital in West Sussex.

Charlton endured six miscarriages and an ectopic pregnancy before she became pregnant but said she felt she was never assessed as high-risk.

University Hospitals Sussex NHS Trust (UH Sussex), which runs the hospital, said the loss of a baby is an "unimaginable tragedy" but it was "unable to comment further while legal proceedings are ongoing".

Charlton said that after becoming pregnant with Hazel in January, 2021, she repeatedly found clinicians caring for her did not have, or did not act on, crucial information from her medical history.

She said details on her previous losses, specialist advice she had received, and a known uterine perforation were often missing from her notes, overlooked, or dismissed.

After she was admitted to hospital at 01:30 BST on 14 July, Charlton claims she was left unmonitored for long periods and repeatedly denied pain relief, before she eventually suffered a seizure and internal bleeding.

Family handout Family mementos of baby Hazel laid on a quilt including her NHS name tag, a lock of her hair and a small hand knitted pink heart. — Baby Hazel was stillborn at Worthing Hospital in July, 2021

Despite efforts at resuscitation, baby Hazel was declared deceased at 09:18 BST - 16 minutes after delivery.

Charlton said: "My daughter died because my individual needs were not understood or acted upon.

"I gave everyone my medical history, and I pleaded to be heard even when I was close to death, but the warning signs were repeatedly ignored."

'Fighting to be heard'

Charlton is among a number of bereaved families from Sussex due to meet Health Secretary Wes Streeting on Wednesday in Brighton.

The Truth for our Babies Group is asking for a full, independent review, chaired by senior midwife Donna Ockenden, to investigate maternity services at UH Sussex.

Charlton said: "Since the start of my fertility journey, I have been fighting to be listened to.

"I will continue to fight to ensure that I'm heard now, because I cannot bear the thought of inadequate care continuing across maternity units in Sussex.

"This cannot happen to another family"

A statement from the Sussex Truth for our Babies Group reads: "The experience Liz endured shows exactly why Sussex needs a full and wide-reaching independent review.

"Liz is sadly only one of over 60 families in the region whose lives have been altered forever by maternity care failings.

"We are now putting our faith in Wes Streeting to respond to our calls for accountability and change."

Dr Maggie Davies, chief nurse at UH Sussex, said: "The loss of a baby is an unimaginable tragedy for any parent, and we offer our deepest condolences and sincere apologies to Hazel's family.

"Everyone involved in Hazel's care has been deeply affected by her loss, and the suffering we know it has caused.

"We cannot comment further while legal proceedings are ongoing, but we recognise that no settlement can ever truly compensate for the family's distress.

"Our priority is always to provide the best care - that means listening carefully, learning, and making changes so that families today get the safest care possible."