Inquest finds several “missed opportunities” in sad death of baby Adele O'Sullivan

Following the numerous high-profile cases of baby deaths across the country, news has broken that there has been another inquest into the sad death of baby Adele O'Sullivan.

The inquest found that there were several “missed opportunities” to improve both mother and baby's care, including a delay in examining Mrs O'Sullivan after she noticed bleeding at 29 weeks gestation. Mrs O'Sullivan had been flagged as a high risk patient, yet the onset of bleeding still did not trigger an urgent review which would have confirmed of the onset of labour. Despite the Coroner finding these delays not to have been the primary cause of baby Adele's death, it should be queried whether, had these numerous missed opportunities been corrected along the way, the outcome would have been different. Mr and Mrs O'Sullivan have stated that they have completely lost trust in the system and feel as though they are yet another family affected by the Trust. The Department of Health and Social Care is due to provide their review into the maternity services by the end of the year, and all of the families affected desperately hope that this will bring real change. As clinical negligence lawyers we represent families and children who have suffered or have lost loved ones as a result of failures in medical care during labour and birth. These claims seek to ensure that any child who has suffered a preventable injury can access the services they require such as care, therapy, aids and equipment, and suitably adapted accommodation which may assist them during their lives. We can also help secure an apology from the Trust responsible and seek to ensure the same mistakes are not made again.

Please see our designated claims against maternity services page for more information.

If you or a loved one have similar concerns, please do not hesitate to contact a member of our national team for a free, confidential discussion.