Telford hospital midwife misconduct in baby death case

Princess Royal Hospital's A&E department would close between 20:00 and 08:00

Two midwives have been found guilty of misconduct over their roles in their care of a woman whose baby died four days after being born.

Laura Jones and Hayley Lacey will discover what punishment will be handed down by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) on Friday.

Ms Jones had told an NMC panel aspects of her care at Telford's Princess Royal Hospital were "unacceptable".

The NMC will take no further action against a third midwife, Kerry Davies.

The five-day hearing is due to conclude on Friday, having earlier ruled Ms Jones and Ms Lacey's fitness to practise is impaired by reason of their misconduct.

The boy, known as Baby K during proceedings, died in August 2015.

None of the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SATH) workers was accused of causing the death of the infant.

• Latest news from the West Midlands

At a previous finding-of-facts hearing, several charges against Ms Jones and Ms Lacey were proven, highlighting they did not communicate enough to ensure his mother's continuous care.

The case has come from a direct referral to the NMC and is part of a review of maternity care at the trust where more than 250 families have come forward with concerns.

On Monday, Ms Jones said: "Poor handover meant that observations were missed - obviously that was completely unacceptable and should never have happened."

Ms Davies previously admitted she should have checked the baby's heart rate before birth, but denied misconduct.

The panel decided her fitness to practise is not impaired, meaning there is no misconduct.