Heartbreaking moment new mother cradled her baby hours before he passed away because of bungled birth
Little Alfie Field died at an under-performing hospital and would have survived had midwives and doctors acted to deliver him sooner
A NEWBORN baby died at an under-performing hospital after doctors failed to spot problems with his heart rate during labour.
Heartbreaking pictures show little Alfie Field being held by his mum shortly before he passed away because of his bungled birth.
The newborn would have survived had midwives and doctors acted to deliver him sooner, an inquest has ruled.
The hospital had been placed in special measures and rated "inadequate” by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) just months earlier.
Alfie’s mum and dad heard evidence that opportunities to deliver their son sooner, potentially avoiding complications, were missed during a two-hour window leading up to his birth.
Their first born was left with brain damage following a "complicated birth" and died little more than a day later at just 35 hours old.
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Kym, 25, and her husband Mark, 28 said they were “wrong” to trust the medics paid to look after them.
Speaking after the inquest the couple - from Lower Cambourne, Cambridgeshire - said: "We are very angry.
“These things just shouldn't happen. We kept Alfie safe for nine months and when you go into hospital, especially for the birth of your first child, you trust the actions of those paid to look after you. In this case we were wrong to do that."
An inquest heard that Addenbrooke's Hospital – run by Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH) - has made changes to its maternity unit in the wake of Alfie’s death.
Staff have undergone additional training following tragic Alfie’s passing in December last year.
In September, the chief inspector of hospitals, Sir Mike Richards, warned that pregnant women were among patients put at risk by the failings at the hospital.
He said the maternity unit had been forced to close and divert patients elsewhere several times because of a shortage of midwives.
Last month a follow-up inspection found the hospital still "required improvement" in several areas, including in maternity care, but had made progress.
A Cambridge University Hospitals spokesman said: "The Trust would like to express its deep regret to Alfie Field's family and repeat the apology made to them for the treatment received during labour.
"We take this matter very seriously, and a thorough investigation has been carried out to ensure lessons are learned and changes of practice have been made.
"We continue to liaise with the family and we hope the conclusion of the inquest provides the answers to the many questions the family have."
The family's solicitor, Tim Deeming, of Slater and Gordon Lawyers, said the case had implications for the entire health service.
He said: “This case highlights the urgent need for better and regular training surrounding the monitoring of foetal heart rates and should be used as an example across the NHS to improve standards and prevent more avoidable deaths.”
Dad Mark comforted wife Kym, 25, as they attended the inquest yesterday.
They heard how two doctors assessed Mrs Field on four occasions between 10.10am and 11.45am on December 19.
One told the inquest he thought the reading on Alfie's heart rate monitor was "uninterpretable".
The baby boy was eventually delivered by natural birth at 12.33pm - but the senior consultant on duty that day said he believed action should have been taken sooner.
In recording a short narrative conclusion, coroner David Heming said: "What becomes clear, having looked at all of the evidence, is there was a misinterpretation of the recording of Alfie's heart rate during the second stage of labour, when they showed abnormal features which indicated the need for intervention and delivery.
"An expedited delivery from 10.10am onwards would, on balance, have led to survival."
Alfie died after being placed in a neo-natal intensive care unit immediately after he was born.
Doctors said he was "comfortable and did not suffer".
The inquest heard post-mortem examination found his cause of death was asphyxiation and head trauma.
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