![NHS investigations into baby deaths and brain damage ‘not good enough’](https://chadlaw.dnsupdate.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/newborn_baby.jpg)
10
Jun 2016
NHS investigations into baby deaths and brain damage ‘not good enough’
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists have published a report into the investigations of difficulties during labour and warn that too many are of poor quality.
The review also looked into the number of investigations that involved parents and found that nearly 75% of those reviewed did not involve the parents in any purposeful way.
The inquiry, which has been named Each Baby Counts, has been established to make sure that lessons are learnt when things go wrong with labour and birth, the aim being to reduce by 50% the number of babies who die or are left severely disabled by 2020.
In the United Kingdom in 2015, of 800,000 births after 37 weeks of pregnancy, 655 babies had severe brain injuries, 119 were stillborn and there were 147 deaths within seven days of birth. In all of these cases, the babies had been healthy before labour.
Professor Alan Cameron, vice president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said “When the outcome for parents is the devastating loss of a baby or a baby born with a severe brain injury, there can be little justification for the poor quality of reviews found.
“The emotional cost of these events is immeasurable, and each case of disability costs the NHS around £7m in compensation to pay for the complex, lifelong support these children need.”
Health Minister Ben Gummer said “We expect the NHS to review and learn from every tragic case, which is why we are investing in a new system to support staff to do this and help ensure far fewer families have to go through this heartache.”
Chadwick Lawrence’s team of medical negligence lawyers have years of experience in high value and complex medical negligence compensation claims and have an excellent record. The team is led by Tony May, a specialist cerebral palsy and birth injury solicitor, who has over 20 years experience in handling cases in which babies have been brain damaged or sustained other injuries as a result of medical negligence. He and his team continue to represent many cerebral palsy children and young adults in medical negligence claims. Tony also acts as the Court of Protection Deputy for many of the cerebral palsy and brain damaged clients that he has represented, so we can continue to support you after your case is settled. Tony can be contacted by email on tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk. Alternatively, please call and speak to any of Chadwick Lawrence’s specialist medical negligence Legal Aid and no win-no fee solicitors for free legal advice on the freephone number below.
Freephone: 0800 028 2969
For further information, please see our cerebral palsy and birth injury website:
http://www.cerebralpalsyclaimssolicitors.co.uk
Posted by Tony May, Partner/head of Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.
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