'From excitement to emptiness': Families affected by largest NHS maternity scandal tell their stories

A significant story is unfolding on the international scene. 'From excitement to emptiness': Families affected by largest NHS maternity scandal tell their storiesByGreig Watson and Chris Waring, East Midlands Published33 minutes agoThe findings of an inquiry into the largest maternity scandal in NHS history have finally been made public. The numbers are as striking as they are horrific - about 2,500 families involved and the stark figure of 155 babies who may have survived with better care, in addition to 105 who suffered serious injury due to failings. A total of 520 cases of mothers and babies were graded as 2 or 3 for harm, with grade 2 representing "significant concerns" and grade 3 "major concerns" over care.

Grade 2 represents sub-optimal care in which different management might have made a difference to the outcome, while grade 3 is where different management would reasonably be expected to have made a difference. Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust has apologised to all those affected and said it was committed to making improvements. But behind the statistics are the faces and stories of the families who have been changed forever.

The Details

Sarah and Jack HawkinsImage source, /Chris WaringIn April 2016, Sarah Hawkins and her husband Jack lost their daughter Harriet when she was stillborn at Nottingham City Hospital after intervention was repeatedly delayed. Harriet was delivered nine hours after dying and an external review of the case concluded her death was "almost certainly preventable". In her landmark report, Ockenden said Harriet's death "was compounded by a systemic cover-up and investigations designed to mislead, which took a profound toll on the couple's wellbeing".

She called Jack and Sarah's fight for the truth "a watershed moment" and "the patient safety catalyst for the Nottingham maternity review". Jack told the : "My God, you know, how on earth are you supposed to deal with the change in life from such excitement to utter emptiness? "'Don't be too kind': Maternity staff used offensive terms to refer to pregnant womenStillborn baby's parents receive £2.

8m from Nottingham hospital trustBaby death 'almost certainly preventable' - reportGary and Sarah AndrewsImage source, SuppliedGary and Sarah Andrews's daughter Wynter died 23 minutes after she was delivered by Caesarean section on 15 September 2019 after repeated warning signs of her being in distress had been missed. Gary said: "One clinician sat down and said they'd looked over all the notes and they couldn't see anything wrong and if they listened to every mother's concerns the hospital would be overrun. "Wynter was delivered "in poor condition" with the umbilical cord "wrapped tightly around her leg and neck".

Efforts to resuscitate her were abandoned 23 minutes later. An inquest in October 2020 found Wynter may have survived if "multiple missed opportunities" had been spotted by staff.

The story has become one of the most prominent items on the global agenda.