A baby tragically died during birth after a locum midwife failed to act promptly when the infant’s shoulders became trapped, according to a Health and Disability Commission (HDC) investigation.
The midwife, covering for Ms. A’s usual midwife in a rural community, did not adequately monitor Ms. A’s lengthy labour or seek medical assistance early enough.
When the baby’s head emerged, severe shoulder dystocia was identified too late, delaying intervention.
Despite efforts from additional staff and emergency measures, the baby was delivered unresponsive and later pronounced dead, with asphyxiation cited as the cause. Post-delivery, the midwife also failed to detect Ms. A’s sepsis, further compounding concerns about the care provided.
The HDC report highlighted systemic issues, including insufficient foetal monitoring and poor communication between the midwife and hospital staff.
Expert review noted that the midwife’s 24-hour shift likely impaired her judgment, while rural midwifery shortages exacerbated challenges. The midwife acknowledged her mistakes and was referred for a review of her competence.
This is so incredibly sad for this family to endure.
This situation does beg the question, is our Medical fraternity and the services fit for purpose?
Day after day, more and more reports, Yet these families are seriously implicated and every time this occurs there is a lengthy investigation into ..competency? Clearly this is lacking but how many years did this take to unravel while many more patients are at risk of the same issues.
The HDC and their processes appear ineffective in cementing the necessary changes to bring about the required level of competence and a level of public confidence that aligns to the Patient Code of Rights.
Is it time to reinvent the wheel back to old school medicine where saving lives and meticulous care once took pride in place in all things Medical? Is it timely to create a higher level of accountability.?
There are no excuses for incompetence!