Telford hospital midwives cautioned in baby death case

Midwives have been sanctioned following a baby's death four days after birth at Princess Royal Hospital

Two midwives have been cautioned over their care of a mother whose baby died, to "send a message to the public" about the profession's required standards.

Laura Jones and Hayley Lacey were found guilty on Thursday of misconduct over their performance at Telford's Princess Royal Hospital in 2015.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council has now issued a three-year and one-year caution respectively, which are on file for patients to see during the periods.

The pair's employer has apologised.

Following a five-day Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) panel hearing, Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust (SATH) said: "We thoroughly investigated the events surrounding this tragic death and fully accept that there was a failure to fully follow guidelines on [bleeding before birth], and for this we are extremely sorry."

Neither woman was accused of causing the death of the boy, four days after he was born.

Procedural changes have been brought in at the hospital following the infant's death (generic picture)

The chair of the NMC panel, Philip Sayce, said he hoped the sanctions sent "a message to the public and the profession about the standards required of a registered midwife".

He added he hoped procedural changes made at the hospital following the death had "provided some comfort to the family".

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Charges against Ms Jones and Ms Lacey found proven at an earlier hearing highlighted how they did not communicate enough to ensure the mother's continuous care.

On Monday, Ms Jones said "poor handover meant that observations were missed" - which she described as "completely unacceptable".

A new standardised handover system is being trialled.

Maternity care is being reviewed at SATH, where more than 250 families have come forward with questions or concerns.

A spokesperson said: "This has been a terrible experience for the baby's family and extremely distressing for the midwives, who have recognised that their care fell short of what was required of them."