A woman was forced to keep her baby’s remains in her home refrigerator after suffering a miscarriage and was reportedly rejected by NHS officials.
Laura Brody visits the A&E department at Louisham University Hospital in south-east London with her partner Lawrence White after suffering a miscarriage at home.
In response to the case Monday night, Maria Caulfield, the women’s health minister, offered her condolences to the couple and vowed to provide more support to women who have had miscarriages.
The couple, who were carrying their baby’s remains in a plastic box, were placed in a waiting room with about 30 other people and told to “sit in the back.”
They kept their baby’s remains in the waiting room for about five hours after staff told them there was no safe place to store them.
Ms Brody told The Guardian: “They said we did not have the documents for the remains to be taken to the morgue. Which we found exceptional because it was ridiculous to expect someone who had just given birth at home to suddenly come up with documents. “
He said he would need surgery
Ms. Brody was eventually taken to the bay, where she was told she would need surgery to remove the placenta, but none of the staff would help them with the baby or even look at it, the couple said.
“There was no one in the hospital willing to take care of our baby,” Mr White told the BBC.
“No one seemed to know what was going on. Our baby has been in a hot room for nearly five hours.
“So together we decided to take him home.”
Around midnight, Mr. White returned home by taxi and made room in their refrigerator to place his baby’s remains.
The Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust said a full investigation into the incident was under way.
Ms. Brody initially visited the hospital’s early pregnancy ward after she began bleeding heavily four months after her pregnancy.
The couple was told they still had palpitations, but after additional scans days later, doctors confirmed that their baby had died.
Sent home to wait for bed
Mrs. Brody was sent home to wait in bed at the hospital to give birth. Two days later, she had a miscarriage at home in the bathroom.
“And then I saw that he was a boy,” she told the BBC.
The couple called 999, but were told their situation was not urgent. They wrapped their son’s remains in a towel, put him in a Tupperware box, and headed for A&E.
Ms Brody said of the experiment: “There doesn’t seem to be a safety net when things go wrong with pregnancy.
“And even when all the staff and experts are working really hard, the processes are so wrong that it just felt like we were in hell.”
The Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust said: “We deeply regret and express our sincere condolences to Ms. Brody and her partner for the tragic loss of their baby and these traumatic experiences.
“A full investigation is underway to find out where deficiencies in care may have occurred so that all necessary changes and improvements can be made.”
Ms Caulfield said: “Every loss of a child is a tragedy and my deepest sympathies are with Mrs Brody and her family.
“This government is committed to making the NHS the safest place to maternity care in the world, and we have invested £ 95 million in recruiting 1,200 midwives and 100 obstetricians while our new working group on maternity inequalities explores how to further reduce the number of stillbirths and deaths of mothers.
“Later this year, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists will publish new guidelines that will support NHS trusts to provide more personalized abortion care, helping women at every step of their journey, including treatment and management options. of future pregnancies.
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