Root Cause Analysis (Serious Incident Reports)

These HSIB maternity investigations look at factors that have harmed or may harm NHS patients and they work closely with patients, families and healthcare staff, but they do not attribute blame or liability.

The aim is to share learning and to make safety recommendations that improve safety at a national level. Around a thousand independent maternity safety reviews are carried out each year.

A Child Death Review must be carried out for all children regardless of the cause of death. This includes the death of any live-born baby where a death certificate has been issued. For the avoidance of doubt, it does not include stillbirths, late fetal loss, or terminations of pregnancy.

A Child Death Review may not happen until 12 months following the death.

The Child Death Review Meeting (CDRM) should be attended by professionals who were directly involved in the care of the child during his or her life, and any professionals involved in the investigation into his or her death.

A Child Death Overview Panel (CDOP) of doctors, other health specialists and childcare professionals consider the information, to try to ascertain what caused the death, what support and treatment was offered to the child and their family up until the death, and what support was offered to the family after the child died.

It is required to consider whether any preventable factors contributed to the death and it decides whether there are any recommendations and actions needed to help prevent similar child deaths in the future.

Whatever the type of review or investigation that was or is being carried out Hudgell Solicitors’ can support families through the process.

The process of getting answers can be daunting for parents who often feel overwhelmed by the number of reviews and investigations that can be launched following a birth injury or baby but our experts can help you receive the answers you seek.

Sometimes babies die because of the quality-of-care mums and babies receive.

An enquiry in 2015 found that in 60 per cent of cases, a stillbirth might have been prevented if health professionals had followed national or relevant local guidelines.

The National Perinatal Mortality Review Tool (PMRT) was launched in 2018 and aims to provide answers for bereaved parents and their families about why their baby died.

Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership says in the last year 3,981 reviews were carried out across the UK, 97% of which identified at least one issue with care (with an average of four issues per death – increasing to five issues per death where the baby was born at term). Other key findings include:

Inadequate fetal growth surveillance was identified as relevant in 9% of deaths reviewed and remains the most common single issue

Inadequate investigation or management of reduced fetal movement was the second most common single issue (relevant in 8% of deaths reviewed)

This investigates child brain injuries at birth to determine if negligence has caused the harm. The aim is to speed up investigations into such incidents give answers to families as soon as possible and improve the process for obtaining compensation.

Negligence during pregnancy, at birth or post-natal can happen due to oversights, incorrect advice or a failure from medical professionals to take into account pre-existing medical conditions and medication.

Maternity teams, including doctors, midwives or gynaecologists have a duty of care to identify and manage any risks or complications. If accurate and timely advice and recommendations are not provided this can result in medical negligence.

Maternity negligence can result in lifelong conditions for both child and mother.

Examples of medical negligence during pregnancy where Hudgell Solicitors have successfully represented clients include:

• Failure to identify birth defects such as Down’s syndrome and cystic fibrosis and other conditions which may result in stillbirth.
• Failure to monitor a mother’s existing medical conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity.
• Failure to diagnose illnesses, complications and injuries such as pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes, placental abruption and ectopic pregnancies.
• Miscarriage negligence as a result of a woman not being adequately monitored when she is known to be at high risk during pregnancy.
• Failure to manage complications either before or at the time of birth can sometimes lead to lifelong birth injuries such as cerebral palsy, Erbs palsy and brachial plexus.

Other mistakes which can lead to babies being born harmed include:

• Failure to carry out appropriate tests during pregnancy.
• Misinterpretation of scans, leading to an incorrect diagnosis/treatment.
• Failure to act upon reduced baby movements during pregnancy.
• Failure to act when a mother’s blood pressure reaches dangerous levels.
• Failure to carry out cesarean births when signs point to potential harm.
• Errors during delivery causing injury, such as use of forceps or ventouse.

Birth Injuries where Hudgell Solicitors represents clients include:

• Cord prolapse
• Cord compression
• Uterine rupture
• Hypoxia/Lack of oxygen
• Ruptured placenta
• Haemorrhage
• Hypoglycaemia
• Kernicterus caused by untreated Jaundice
• Group B Streptococcus

If aged 18 and over, you will typically have three years from the date that the negligence occurred or from the date that you became aware of negligent treatment. For under-18s, there is no time limit. However, once a child reaches 18, the standard 3-year claim period comes into effect.

Our expert childbirth injury solicitors will:

• Carry out initial fact-finding by discussing with you what happened, what went wrong and the impact it has had on your life.
• Inform the healthcare provider of our investigation into the care they provided, requesting relevant medical records and details of examinations and treatment.
• Analyse medical records, work out what went wrong, and what could have been done to prevent any injuries and conditions from occurring.
• Seek independent medical opinion to determine whether a mother or child’s injuries could and should have been prevented, with proper care and treatment.
• Make a decision, based on the evidence gathered, as to whether we are in a position to make an official claim for damages to compensate for the suffering and hardship caused.
• Should admissions of negligence be secured, consider an application for interim payments to cover the cost of any immediate needs for a child and family.
• Seek to negotiate a birth injury settlement out of court which reflects the injury and loss caused, including damages to cover any future care and assistance required.

Our experienced legal team is supported by in-house medical experts – including a registered midwife – meaning we are able to fully assess cases and the standard of treatment provided.

We listen to your questions and provide free, expert advice to help you decide if you want to start a birth negligence claim. There is no commitment at this stage, but it will enable our lawyers to assess whether your case can be taken forward and inform you what the next steps will be.

Should we feel we can pursue a compensation claim on your behalf, a specialist medical negligence lawyer will be assigned and dedicated to supporting you through your case. They will explain, in plain, non-legal language, what is likely to be needed from you at each stage of the process, including what evidence and information will need to be obtained.

Birth injury cases are handled on a no win, no fee basis. This means you will not have to pay any money upfront and there will be no financial risk if your case is unsuccessful. If your case is successful, you will only be expected to pay a contribution to your solicitor’s fees once the case has been resolved.

We also offer Legal Aid funding for certain types of birth injury compensation claims. This is usually for claims involving children who have a neurological injury that has resulted in severe disability, which has been sustained either through pregnancy, during the birth or the first eight weeks of the child’s life. Get in touch to discuss how Legal Aid can help you fund your claim.

Only accredited specialists in birth injury claims have a legal aid franchise that allows them to represent families when a child suffers a neurological injury before, during or no later than eight weeks from birth.

Hudgell Solicitors is proud to be one of only a small number of firms to offer this service so we can ensure families are not left out of pocket when seeking the compensation and support they will require, often for the rest of their child’s life.

Every birth injury case involving a child will be assessed for public funding eligibility.

Compensation for maternity negligence and birth trauma can vary vastly depending upon the severity of injury and loss suffered. Traumatic birth compensation or compensation for a birth injury to a mother may vary greatly when compared to birth injury compensation claims where a child faces long-term effects.

For life-long injuries, such as Cerebral palsy or Erb’s palsy, damages can be awarded into many millions of pounds, as this money is required to cover the cost of round-the-clock care and home adaptations.

• Damages are awarded to help families through difficult times without the added worry of the financial implications of additional medical care or other costs. These can include:
• Damages for the pain and suffering caused to the mother or child due to a doctor or medical staff member’s negligence.
• Funding for required care, equipment or household adjustments.
• Medical expenses incurred by seeking specialist healthcare to deal with the injuries or afflictions following a birth injury.
• Loss of earnings for you or a loved one acting as a carer due to the injuries sustained.
• Funeral expenses in the event of a patient dying due to birth negligence, whether this is the mother or child.