A baby boy’s brain injury was caused by midwives who failed to accurately monitor his heart rate and then fabricated medical notes, the UK High Court has heard.
Jaden Astley sustained a brain injury at birth after his umbilical cord was compressed for a prolonged time, which resulted in a lack of oxygen.
The youngster, now 11, now suffers from deafness, motor impairments, cognitive difficulties, and behavioral difficulties because of the brain injury.
Following a five-day liability trial, the high court ruled on July 28 that the errors by the midwifery team at Royal Preston Hospital were responsible for his brain injury.
Mr. Justice Martin Spencer stated that the midwives had failed to accurately monitor Jaden’s heart rate when he was born in July 2012.
They also failed to identify his heart rate, which was slower than normal, during delivery and even fabricated Jaden’s medical notes.
If everything had been done accurately and properly, then Jaden could have been delivered earlier which would have prevented his brain injury.
Solicitor Trevor Ward, who represented the family, said that the behavior of the midwives was “deeply concerning” and that it’s been a ‘difficult journey’ for the family.
He said: “This has been a traumatic and difficult journey for the Astley family.
“We very much welcome the judgment, which finds that Lancashire Teaching Hospitals were negligent in their care of Jayden during his birth at the Royal Preston Hospital.
“The behavior of and actions taken by the midwives cited in this case are deeply concerning.
“One reason why Jayden’s case has taken so long to get to this point is that, as the Judge makes clear, the midwives failed to take the appropriate actions to ensure Jayden’s safety, and fabricated their notes after the fact.
“We believe this is an urgent matter for the trust to examine.”
“This is not the final stage in the case.
“Today’s judgment, while welcome, determined breach of duty and causation only, not the value of the claim.
“We now have work to do to agree on the damages payable to Jayden for negligence, a process that is likely to take many more months.
“Jayden celebrated his 11th birthday on 22 July, so we very much hope to expedite this next stage in the legal process as fast as possible to bring closure for Jayden and his family.”
Produced in association with SWNS Talker
