Newborn baby's death 'potentially avoidable'

More mothers and babies are to be transferred from Caithness General to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness for care

The death of a newborn baby at Wick's Caithness Maternity Unit could have been avoided, NHS Highland has said.

The health board said the recent incident had led to an immediate change to the arrangements at the unit.

It said the baby's death was "potentially avoidable" if there had been "more timely and immediate access" to advanced support in Inverness.

NHS Highland said an initial review of the incident had found no failings in the care provided by individual staff.

But it added that "a number of issues concerning the current arrangements and protocols for neonatal paediatric risk assessment and support" needed to be reviewed "to ensure the safety of both mothers and newborn babies in the future".

'Very tragic'

More women and their babies will now be transferred from the unit at Caithness General Hospital to Inverness' Raigmore Hospital pre-birth, during labour, birth and in the post-natal period, the health board said.

It has lowered the threshold at which women and babies are deemed to be in need of the larger hospital's facilities.

Dr Rod Harvey, medical director for NHS Highland, said: "This is a very tragic case and our thoughts and condolences are with the family.

"Regrettably, our preliminary investigations have determined that this death was potentially avoidable had different arrangements been in place to ensure more timely and immediate access to advanced paediatric support facilities at Raigmore Hospital.

"Having considered the events leading up to the death and in order to ensure that as far as is possible these circumstances do not happen again, the clinical team have made a number of recommendations that have already been put in place.

"These changes are to improve the safety of mothers and babies during labour and birth in the Caithness Maternity Unit while we await the outcome and implications of a more detailed review of this case."

The unit is part of Caithness General Hospital in Wick

Dr Harvey added: "While our initial review did not find any failings in the care provided by individual staff it did highlight a number of issues concerning the current arrangements and protocols for neonatal paediatric risk assessment and support, which now need to be reviewed to ensure the safety of both mothers and new born babies in the future."

A Significant Adverse Event Review is to be held.

It will involve the board's medical director, clinical director for north and west, local clinical staff including midwives and obstetricians and experts from outside NHS Highland.

The baby's family will also be invited to contribute to the review.

High risk

NHS Highland said a decision was made to deliver the baby at the Caithness unit in line with local protocol and procedures.

However, under the newly introduced temporary arrangement, the mother would have been transferred to Raigmore.

NHS Highland said in that in 2014, there were 254 births to Caithness women.

Of these two thirds were born in the maternity unit in Caithness General with the remainder born in Raigmore. The majority of babies born in Raigmore fell into the high risk category.

Caithness General is classed as a consultant-led maternity unit with no neonatal intensive care unit facility.

Care is delivered by midwives supported by three consultant obstetricians.

While there are monitoring facilities for newborn babies and anaesthetic support there are no paediatric facilities on site.