to think this 'midwife' should be struck off

[Northernlurkerisbackatwork]

I have been reading an account of an inquest in to the death of a woman who bled to death following a homebirth here

I have no quarrel with the decision to have a home birth. The mother should have been safe enough in competent hands. I cannot believe that a competent midwife would miss that so large a part of the placenta was missing. If there was any doubt about that - and she clearly noticed parts were missing she should have stayed and monitored the mothers condition. In another account I've read it mentions that she was doing CPR on the bed instead of moving the mother to the floor where it would have been most effective.

However it is her comment to the inquest '?Claire had a great pregnancy, she had a really lovely spontaneous birth at home and I hope Simon (the husband) in time will remember that.? What? Remember that shortly before his wife suffered massive blood loss and cardiac arrest she had a normal delivery? And thus be all comforted? Who is she trying to kid. The lack of insight and empathy displayed is chilling. I earnestly hope she isn't permitted to attend another pregnant woman!

Of course this case will be used to hammer home birth - when the issue is in fact a negligent care-giver.

I am absolutely in shock reading that, she sounds really cold. Personally I don't think striking her off is enough, if the facts in that article are correct then it was completely her fault that poor woman died, she should be charged with manslaughter.

I wondered that missy. Will be interesting to see what the verdict is from the inquest.

I wouldn't want to go into medical details or the pros and cons of home births because I just don't know enough, but saying of a woman who has died that she had "a great pregnancy" and "a lovely spontaneous birth at home" would indicate a lack of empathy in the midwife.

I suspect this midwife will be struck off and as a midwife myself I think this is a horribly unsympathetic unaware thing to say, very sad story.

Without ever really knowing the ins and outs of the case, that last comment just made my blood boil. I doubt the family will ever be comforted by those facts, ffs. The poor family are suffering an awful loss. What a complete lack of compassion.

I am shocked. Poor husband, what on earth must he be feeling. Bitch deserves to be struck off just for that comment. My MWs were lovely, couldn't imagine them coming out with bilge like that.

Its quite shocking that the husband had to repeatedly call her with concerns before she came back. Given that her previous birth had some problems she should have either stayed for a lot longer or came back straight away. Pulling the placenta out and then not noticing that a massive bit of it was missing is total negligence and incompetence. I really hope she does get charged and much more of a punishment than being struck off. I will watch this story with interest.

Will CPR work effectivly in the case of massive bloodloss?

So sad that one MWs negligence will be used as evidence against HB.

DD2 was born at home with two lovely NHS midwives present.

I had a managed third stage, having decided that the risk of a retained placenta was better than having the slightly higher risk of bleeding if you deliver the placenta naturally. Its 14 miles to the hospital and pre sat nav. the chances of a ambulance finding my house quickly were nil.

All the team MWs had taken it in turn to do antenatal visits

My MWs were most insistent on a bright light and clearly did all the placenta delivery procedure and checks just like they did in hospital for DD1.

My deepest sympathy goes to this family and I hope people understand this was an isolated mistake by one MW.

Sadly such mistakes happen everyday in hospital, sometimes with equally tragic consequences.

DD2s birth was the most beautiful experience and I hope I went into it with my eyes open as to the risks.

I think there have been many many issues recently with poor care given by midwives which of course can have devastating effects. It is a shame as there are so many amazing midwives out there - mine were lovely.

My SIL gave birth recently and was sent back and forth numerous times whilst in labour with her first child. Eventually she went back in for the 3rd or 4th time saying she felt like she needed to push. Basically the midwife told her she couldn't have any gas and air as wasn't dilated at all and was only in the early stages of labour. She then told her they would have to go home again. Prior to this she had been told she was 2cm dilated so SIL insisted she wasn't going to and asked for someone to check her again as you can't 'undilate'- it turned out she was fully dilated and the baby was breech and now they believe he had been all along but the midwives hadn't detected it.

There were 9 midwives with 18 women in labour that day so not enough beds and not enough staff.

While I agree with most of what you have written, this is odd. "In another account I've read it mentions that she was doing CPR on the bed instead of moving the mother to the floor where it would have been most effective."

I have done CPR many, many, many times and have never moved a patient from the bed to the floor. I can't imagine how I, on my own, would move an arrested patient from the bed to the floor. You just need to get on and do CPR.

"Will CPR work effectively in the case of massive bloodloss?"

CPR in the presence of hypovolaemia without blood or fluids being poured in would not have been successful in any situation.

As for the rest of it, this was a woman who had a previous section and PPH. This was not a low risk delivery and she should not have been at home. I am all for low risk mothers having home births (I've had one myself) but this woman should have been strongly counselled to have a birth in hospital. I do wonder if the NHS midwives weren't going for it and that's why she employed an independent midwife.

The midwife here though, regardless of all that, does appear to have made some very dangerous decisions that (based on these articles alone, I don't know the full facts) otherwise might have prevented this woman's death.

Her statement about the lovely birth at home shows a shocking lack of insight and is most damning about how she feels it all went.

Shocking.

My midwife failed to spot a large part of placenta had been left behind- this was in a hospital birth.
Speaking to someone else totally unrelated years down the line who had a similar thing happen- turns out was the same midwife. Maybe they are more careless/trained less about the imporance of examining the placenta?

I'm sure i read a statement from one of the family that she was "pressured" into a homebirth. It seems strange considering her medical history and the fact she employed an independent midwife

I'm not sure she would have been pressured so much as just hired a midwife who told her what she wanted to hear.

A few things seem really odd. Firstly it says that the MW was first engaged to support a hospital birth. I thought that this was not allowed and one could not engage an independent MW to carry out a delivery in hospital. An independent MW can go with a woman if she is transferred from a home birth into hospital but cannot then take part in the birth as a MW only in a doula type capacity.

Also the comment about the lovely spontaneous birth at home etc is very odd and I wonder if it has been taken out on context. Makes me wonder if the impetus for the home birth did come from the women herself inspite of advice against (surely someone advised her she was high risk even if it was not this MW) and the MW is saying this is the sort of birth the mother really wanted.

Not noticing that a third of the placenta was retained seems very strange but I don't know enough to know how hard it is to tell. I know retaining some that goes unnoticed is not that uncommon but a third seems an awful lot.

shocking! The fact that she was misinformed and then left. her poor husband now has no wife and the baby is without a mother.
my hospital is 5 minutes away from our house but after two not so straight forward births there is no way I would have a home birth. My first got very stuck and had to be helped out and my second was purple and needed resuscitation.
I am sure she will be struck off and have some sort of negligence suit against her.

It seems to me that the likely course of events was that the mother hired a private midwife to ensure constant support throughout the birth, then the midwife, knowing that she would not be permitted to deliver the baby in hospital in her capacity as a private midwife, has persuaded her that a home birth would be safe and she should do that instead.

It is unconscionable that a medical professional should put their own fees/career/personal sense of fulfilment (or whatever motivated her to push for a homebirth) before the safety of a person in their care. It is also sad that this will add to the arsenal of those who are opposed to all home births, even low risk ones attending by adequate numbers of qualified and insured midwives.

I hope she is struck off.

Her argument doesn't hold up, she says she'd have to be an idiot to check placenta in the dark? Well if it was light how did she not notice a third missing?

I would question what happened about the HB though, she must have seen an NHS mw/consultant at some point to have been originally planning a hospital birth, and they must have outlined the risks. If they hired an independent due to fear over the first birth surely that would make you even more wary of HB?

At my trust women are strongly counselled against a home birth if high risk.

It should be discussed with consultant and a supervisor of midwives and the women fully informed.

That's awful. Surely a professional couldn't have really said that? I know there are definitely people who say stuff like that on childbirth forums, but I thought most of them were trolls.

Poor family.

I had natural third stage with both my two and recall the midwives on both occassions spending ages rummaging through the placenta and making detailed notes about what was there - now I know why. I'm very pro home birth for second babies where there has been one straightforward previous delivery and am another who just cannot understand why this poor lady decided it was right for her.

Horrible horrible horrible.

I live in the Netherlands where homebirth is common and considered 'normal' for low-risk women.

I had a serious haemorrhage with my first (part of the placenta was retained) and as a result am now considered medium risk. Although legally nobody could stop me giving birth at home, I have been advised that this would be a foolhardy decision (I have no desire to bleed to death so will be taking medical advice!)

The attitude here is very much anti- pain relief (we dont even have gas and air) and pro- homebirth but the reason why it works so well is that the risks are carefully assessed for each pregnancy and advice is given based on the individual and not on a personal agenda.

The comment made by the midwife is just insane. Even thou I survived my experience, which was nobody's fault mind you, my partner was offered counselling not told that they hoped that later he would remember that it had all gone well up to that point! FFS!

I posted about this in childnbirth, I am shocked as I know a number of ladies including a close friend who did end up in intensive care with every organ shutting down, due to spetisemia due to placenta left in.

Her comments re a lovely spontaneous birth have shocked and chilled me to the core.

I would want to punch her face in If I was that ladies husband.

Doesnt that comment alone show signs of herself being brain washed? the birth was the all important thing, the end result not important?

The husband said his wife was brainwashed - I trust his opinion I dont think he would say that if he and his wife were fully behind a home birth.

I saw an old OBEM the other day - a lady had a long first traumatic labour and wanted to avoid that again, she seemed to have alot of one on one care from a MW who visited her at home then went to hospital with her.

This MW was also insistient throughout the second labour that she would encourage her charge to keep going with the labour even though it was starting to look like the first.

Her voice then went into high panic mode towards the end - as the lady tore badly and the baby came out limp and lifeless and took ages to ressusitate.

the lady did have the option of labour - but this mw kept saying it has its own complications.

there is a mad brainwashed element out there who just blindly insist that natural is the only way to go in all scenarios,.