Heartbroken Parents Call For Lessons To Be Learnt Following The Tragedy

The heartbroken parents of a baby girl who died after only five hours have spoken of their hope that maternity services will be improved after an NHS investigation found that the hospital failed to expedite the delivery of their daughter. 

Venisha Mehta gave birth to Ayana at Barnet Hospital, London, at 5:18am on 13 January, 2015. As Ayana’s due date was not until 29 March, she weighed only 2lbs 7oz.

Despite the best efforts to resuscitate Ayana, she remained in a serious condition and sadly did not recover. 

A post mortem following Ayana’s death found that the immediate cause of death was septicaemia from probable ascending infection. Septicaemia is when there is an invasion of bacteria into the bloodstream.

Ayana’s parents instructed expert medical negligence lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate her death. The Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust has since admitted liability for failing to expedite Ayana’s delivery by caesarean section paving the way for a settlement to be agreed.

Venisha, 32, who lives in Hertfordshire and had already suffered two miscarriages, said: “Losing Ayana has been the hardest thing I have had to face in my life. Throughout my pregnancies I have always been fearful and worried, but you put your trust and faith in the medical staff to look after you.

“Both Atish and I feel completely let down by the maternity services and the treatment I received. My history of experiencing two miscarriages was not identified as a risk factor and therefore appropriate steps were not taken to ensure Ayana was delivered healthy.
 
“We will be forever devastated by what has happened and losing Ayana. We hope by the Trust admitting its failures in this case, and by us speaking out about our experiences, we can prevent another family having to endure the pain we have had to.”

An internal investigation by the hospital into Ayana’s death concluded that failures had been made in the care given to Venisha. It found that the crucial failure was that, on the day that Ayana was born, between 01.00am and 04:55am, there was no midwife allocated to Venisha to provide one to one care.

At this point, Venisha was undergoing a CTG trace which was showing abnormalities. Due to no midwife being present, these were not recognised and there was therefore a delay in identifying that Ayana was in distress.  

Gurpreet Lalli, the expert medical negligence lawyer at Irwin Mitchell’s Cambridge office representing the couple, said: 

Expert Opinion

“The loss of Ayana has been absolutely heart-breaking for Venisha and Atish.

“It has been made all the more difficult to know that, had Ayana been delivered earlier, as she should have been, in all likelihood she would have survived to be a healthy child.

“We welcome the Trust’s decision to accept liability on behalf of the hospital involved. We hope that the staff involved and the Trust as a whole have learnt lessons so that another family does not have to go through a similar tragedy. Of course all of this has sadly come too late for Venisha and Atish and we will continue to work with them and support then through this difficult period.” Gurpreet Lalli - Senior Associate Solicitor

The failures highlighted also included Venisha’s previous second trimester miscarriage not being identified as a risk factor, meaning an appropriate management plan was not discussed.  Evidence clearly showed that a cervical stitch was required due to Venisha’s weak cervix however this was not provided and Venisha had to get this done through private care in order to support Ayana for as long as possible in the womb.

Background
On 11th January, Venisha Mehta, at 29 weeks pregnant, was admitted to Barnet Hospital. She was beginning to pass clear fluid, and was taken to the delivery suite for review.  Venisha, who had suffered two miscarriages in the past, had endured some issues while carrying Ayana, including Ayana being in an unfavourable position, however results from tests remained reassuring.

When in hospital on 11th January, Venisha was kept in overnight to be observed and underwent several tests and examinations. By midday on 12th January, Venisha had been reviewed by a doctor and it was planned that there would a delivery by caesarean section the following morning.

Throughout 12th January, the hospital encountered problems when trying to monitor the fetal heart-rate using a CTG machine. One CTG trace, taken between 13:55pm and 16:40pm that day suggested Venisha’s heart-rate was significantly elevated. The hospital had also failed to recognise Venisha was high risk of rapid deterioration given her medical history results and had failed to monitor her correctly

Finally, on 13th January between 01:00am until 04:55am, the CTG trace abnormalities showing the fact the baby’s heart-rate was slowing down were not recognised.  

Venisha began experiencing abdominal pains at around 04.30am. At 04:55am the decision to deliver was taken and Venisha was transferred to theatre. At 05:21am Venisha Mehta gave birth to baby girl Ayana at Barnet Hospital, London on 13th January, 2015 and was transferred to the neonatal unit for on-going care. As Ayana’s due date was not until 29th March, she weighed only 2lbs 7oz.  

Despite the best efforts to resuscitate Ayana, she remained in a serious condition and sadly did not recover.