It has been reported today that Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust are to be fined £800,000 for the neglect of baby Wynter Andrews in 2019 which led to her devastating death.
Baby Wynter died just 23 minutes after she was born by caesarean section in September 2019 at the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham.
An inquest in 2020 found that she died from hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy, which is a loss of oxygen flow to the brain. It was found that this could have been prevented if the staff had delivered baby Wynter earlier.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) brought charges against the Trust after mistakes made by staff resulted in both Wynter and her mother not receiving safe care and treatment in its maternity services. Concerns should have been noted earlier by midwives on the day that Wynter was born, and it was found that her birth eventually took place past the 60-minute caesarean section target set by the NHS.
The CQC has the power to prosecute health and social care providers in England. Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust has been under scrutiny in relation to maternity services since an inspection in 2020, and it is also part of a major maternity services review by Donna Ockenden.
The Trust immediately indicated that it did not intend to contest the prosecution and said that there had been a lack of adequate processes and symptoms to ensure that staff managed all risks to patients’ health and wellbeing. The Trust pleaded guilty to the prosecution and said it would accept, in full, the findings.
The Judge said that “systemic failures” which took place in the care of Wynter and her mother were “more than sufficient” to cause harm to them both.
Further to their guilty plea, it has been reported today that the resulting fine has been set at £800,000. This was reduced from £1.2million due to the Trust’s guilty plea.
Comment
The substantial fine given to the Trust this week is indicative of just how significant the failings were in this case. Following several years now of general significant concerns over maternity care in England, this case serves as a stark reminder of the devastating consequences that follow when care is below standard.
The Trust will doubtless be working hard now to improve services. They will of course continue to be subject to intense scrutiny for some time to come and have a lot of work to do to rebuild trust with patients.
For the family, the nightmare will probably never truly be over. It is of course hoped that the outcome of the prosecution in which the Trust was held completely accountable for what happened will help the family to now properly grieve this awful loss.
How can Nelsons help
Danielle Young is a Legal Director in our Medical Negligence team, which has been ranked in tier one by the independently researched publication, The Legal 500.
If you have any questions in relation to the subjects discussed in this article, then please get in touch with Danielle or another member of the team in Derby, Leicester, or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online form.
Contact us