Parents suffering 'life sentence' after death of son

Orlando's death was "a result of the cumulative effect of the actions that day" - coroner

The parents of a baby who died 14 days after being born by emergency caesarean say they are serving a "life sentence".

On Thursday, a coroner ruled neglect contributed to the death of Orlando Davis, whose mother's rare condition in labour went unrecognised.

Former midwife Robyn Davis, from Steyning, West Sussex, gave birth at Worthing Hospital on 10 September 2021.

University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust said it supported a call for new national guidelines on the condition.

At an inquest in Chichester, senior coroner Penelope Schofield found the baby's death was caused by a type of brain damage.

But she concluded this was contributed to by neglect, after clinicians failed to recognise that Mrs Davis had developed hyponatremia - a lower than normal level of sodium in the bloodstream - during labour.

Ms Schofield told the hearing: "It is my view that there was not one single part of this unfortunate chain of events that of itself amounted to a gross failure.

"This was a case where there has been a gross failure to provide basic medical attention."

Mrs Davis, 28, who had previously worked at Worthing Hospital, said she and her husband had since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Mr Davis, 30, said: "Myself and Robyn have been been served a life sentence. No matter what the coroner deems it as, when the coronial process finishes, people go back to their jobs, people go back to their families."

“And we will come back to ours but we will come back to… one that will never be complete.”

A narrative conclusion found Mrs Davis' condition went "completely unrecognised" while she was having a home birth.

As complications arose during the labour, Mrs Davis was transferred to the hospital.

Coroner cited a "lack of understanding" about mother's rare medical condition

This failure, it found, led to her suffering a number of seizures which restricted oxygen to Orlando before birth and resulted in him suffering an irreversible brain injury.

The couple said they were now joining calls for a public inquiry into maternity care in England.

Chief nurse Maggie Davies from University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust said it offered its "sincere condolences" to the family.

She added that the trust supported the coroner's view that there was an "urgent need" for new national guidelines on hyponatremia, while it had already introduced new guidance and training within its service.