Tomorrow, a ‘harrowing’ study on a series of maternal failures at a scandal-plagued NHS trust will be released.
The East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust staff has been cautioned to prepare for “harrowing” information.
It is intended to describe how newborn babies died needlessly over several years owing to substandard care.
The investigation is also anticipated to uncover how families were frequently neglected or their concerns disregarded, while the trust failed to learn crucial lessons.
The chief executive officer of East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust addressed an email to employees before the delayed publication of the report, which was caused by the passing of the queen.
Tracey Fletcher forewarned colleagues to anticipate a “harrowing report that will have a profound and major impact on families and colleagues, especially those working in maternity services.”
Dr. Bill Kirkup, who previously presided over the 2015 study into the deaths of mothers and infants in Morecambe, has overseen the review involving almost 200 families.
East Kent operates large hospitals, with the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital (QEQM) in Margate and the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford providing its primary maternity services.
The family of baby Harry Richford, who died at the QEQM a week after his birth in 2017, has long battled for answers, alleging that hospital administrators continually dismissed their concerns.
Last year, the charity was penalized £733,000 for failing to properly care for Harry after he suffered a brain injury.
An earlier inquest determined that his death was “entirely avoidable” and identified more than a dozen causes for concern, including the incompetence of an “inexperienced” doctor during the delivery and delays in resuscitating him.
During attempts to resuscitate Harry, a midwife described ‘panic,’ while a nurse characterized the scene as ‘chaotic.’
The East Kent Trust recorded Harry’s death as “anticipated” and did not notify the coroner upon his passing.
Only due to the efforts of Harry’s family did coroner Christopher Sutton-Mattocks become aware of his passing.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC), which inspects hospitals, has frequently rated the trust as “needs improvement,” most recently in October of last year.
It was stated that during unannounced inspections in July 2021, there were insufficient midwives and maternity support personnel to ensure the safety of women and infants.
Inspectors reported that staff members were weary, agitated, and apprehensive and that some community midwives had taken on additional work in the intensive care units, resulting in sometimes 20-hour days.
The Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB), which investigates NHS damage, highlighted in 2020 how maternity care at the trust did not improve despite repeated warnings from its inspectors.
The HSIB began working with East Kent’s maternity units in 2018 and identified “recurrent safety risks,” such as how CTG readings were interpreted, baby resuscitation, the recognition of deterioration in mothers and babies, and the willingness of staff to escalate their concerns to more senior medics.
From December 2018, the HSIB stated that it ‘engaged often’ with the trust regarding its concerns, but continued to observe the same occurrences.
In August 2019, it requested that the trust self-refer to the CQC and regional health officials.
The families of infants who got substandard care at the trust will be the first to receive Dr. Kirkup’s findings.
Expected among them are the parents of Archie Batten, who passed away in September 2019 at the QEQM.
The coroner determined that he died of natural causes that were “contributed to by carelessness” and “gross failure.”
