NHS is facing a massive scandal following 220 unusual baby deaths due to hospital’s negligence.
The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital is under tight scrutiny after experiencing what could be the worst maternity crisis the NHS has ever seen, reports the Daily Mail Online.
The review, which was initiated by Jeremy Hunt in April 2017, is investigating circumstances of over 220 unusual baby deaths at the hospitals.
The initial investigation regarded 23 deaths and other incidents. However, many more families reported their own cases from the last two decades, increasing the number of incidents drastically. Now the families of the deceased have expressed their concern over the possibly biased review.
The concern stems from who features on the panel of experts which are overseeing the review. One member of the panel is the head of the Royal College of Midwives, whose obsession with natural birth has been well known.
His agenda could explain why some of the woman in the maternity ward were heavily discouraged from having a caesarean. Furthermore, the midwives who work at the trust and who were caring for the patients related to the tragedy, are represented by the union.
Another expert on the panel is the head of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, who was supposed to create an unbiased report on his findings two years prior. It has been revealed that he was paid off by the trust, leaving the report unpublished.
The report could have alerted the NHS and perhaps prevented further suffering.
Instead, nine months later, the same head of the collage wrote a complimentary progress update, substantially glossing over their own findings.
Two officials from NHS Improvement are also part of the panel. They were unsuccessful in picking up on the unusually high baby death rate.
One of the victims of the hospital’s negligence is Kayleigh Griffiths. Her daughter Pippa died in April 2016. The midwives which looked after Pippa failed to pick up on her infection.
Another victim is Rhiannon Davies. In 2009, Ms Davis daughter died just six hours after being born at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital.
The blame for the hospital’s inadequacies has been put on their tendency for denial, lack of training and lack of intervention during labours going awry. In November 2018, the Care Quality Commission put the trust in special measures due to the worrying state of the maternity services and A&E.
Despite being assured that the review will remain independent, with the team headed by an independent and experienced midwife, Donna Ockenden, the worry remains that they also report to a higher up panel.
The panel includes Gill Walton, chief executive of the Royal College of Midwives and Lesley Reagan, president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, amongst others.
Dr Kathy McLean, who is a chief of NHS Improvement and part of the panel, has stated that they will work hard to give families the answers they are looking for.
The entire situation seems unacceptable from our point of view. The high death rate of the babies should have been followed up on more thoroughly.
The hospital seems satisfied with shifting blame to anything that fits to avoid liability for its mistakes, which is unprofessional and frankly distasteful.
The panel which overviews further review should be put together carefully to avoid any bias and the staff that was involved in the investigation earlier should experience consequences of their poorly executed job.
We hope that the situation will be dealt with properly this time, so that the victims of the negligence can find some peace. Furthermore, we hope they might seek legal advice and be compensated for their suffering.
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