Doctors disregarded the mother’s requests for a C-section, which could have spared the newborn baby girl’s life, and she died as a result.
On the evening of May 7, 2024, Neha Rajesh passed away 13 hours after being delivered via emergency caesarean surgery. She had excessive blood pressure surrounding her lungs and insufficient oxygen to her brain.
Divya Rajesh, her 34-year-old mother, had pleaded with the physicians, who an inquest heard made “multiple errors” in their treatment, to carry out the procedure hours earlier because she thought it was the safest method to give birth to Neha.
When Divya was admitted to Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford, Essex, she was 35 weeks pregnant and in pre-labor; examinations revealed that Neha’s heart rate was “abnormal.”
However, physicians disregarded the mother’s and her 40-year-old husband Rajesh’s pleas for a caesarean section and proceeded to attempt a natural birth.
Divya was transferred from the labour ward to a day assessment unit following an error, where she was not routinely observed.
Her daughter was eventually delivered by emergency caesarean section more than four hours later, but she had pulmonary hypertension and a hypoxic brain injury.
Medics were found guilty of “multiple errors” prior to Neha’s death, including “lack of a plan” and “holistic care,” according to an inquest.
Rajesh holding his daughter Neha just before she passed away and after her care was taken away
The two years following Neha’s passing have been “the most painful and difficult time of our lives,” according to Divya and Rajesh, who are shown with their four-year-old daughter Saatvika.
Neha’s life would have been “prolonged” and the hypertension could have “probably” been prevented if she had been born sooner, according to Essex coroner Sonia Hayes.
The pair said the past two years had been “the most painful and difficult time of our lives” and engaged medical negligence lawyers to look into the hospital.
“As parents, we tried to explain our concerns and how worried we were about our baby,” Rajesh stated. We trusted the hospital and thought our baby was in good hands, yet it frequently felt like our voices were not being heard. We experience intense sadness, frustration, and heartbreak when we discover that there were times when other choices or behaviours could have altered the result.
“A deep and permanent void in our family” was the result of losing their daughter, he claimed.
“Instead of seeing her grow, we are living with grief and the constant thought that things might have been different if our concerns had been taken seriously,” he said. “Every day we think about the life she should have had and the memories we will never get to create with her.”
The couple, who also have a four-year-old daughter named Saatvika, have stated that policies regarding the treatment of labouring mothers should be strengthened.
“Much of the past two years has been spent trying to understand what went wrong and why our worries as parents were not properly heard when we repeatedly sought help,” Rajesh continued.
The couple said that even though Divya was sent to the hospital as an emergency patient, it took more than four hours to order a caesarean section.
Neha had difficulties breathing with oxygen, although she was not intubated for more than two hours after birth.
Neha wasn’t born until 10.56 p.m., even though the doctors ultimately advised a caesarean at 5 p.m.
Neha was resuscitated after birth but not intubated until staff in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) voiced concerns.
After the doctors stopped treating her, she passed away in Rajesh’s arms on May 8 after noon.
The father claimed that the inadequate hospital care plagued him and his spouse.
“We were worried about our baby and wanted to make sure everything was safe, but despite being in the hospital and raising our concerns, we felt that the seriousness of the situation was not recognised.” “Instead of feeling supported, we often felt that our worries were dismissed, almost as if we were worrying for no reason.” “We trusted the medical professionals and believed that they would carefully assess the situation and act if something was wrong,” he said. In retrospect, it seems like there were a number of chances for additional oversight or earlier intervention. “We think that parents’ voices must be properly listened to.” “Our hope is that by understanding what happened in Neha’s case, lessons will be learned so that no other family has to go through the devastating loss that we have experienced.” Parents’ persistent complaints that something does not feel right should never be disregarded.
Hours before they took action, Neha’s parents pleaded with the doctors to give her a caesarean section. Pictured: Neha prior to her death and following the conclusion of her therapy
Essex’s Mid and South Neha should have been born sooner, according to the NHS Foundation Trust.
“Divya and Rajesh have suffered the most unimaginable loss and are understandably traumatised by the way they lost their precious daughter.” “To know things could have been so different had they received the care and compassion they were entitled to expect is absolutely heartbreaking,” stated Emily Welstead, the couple’s attorney.
“We offer our sincere condolences to Neha’s family,” stated Christine Blanshard, Chief Medical Officer for the Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust.We conducted an investigation shortly after Neha’s death and discovered areas where she and her mother could have received better treatment.This involved paying attention to the parents’ worries, making more observations, improving shift changeover, and keeping a closer eye on things.
“We are working with our obstetric teams to improve monitoring and ensure more detailed clinical handovers between teams after learning from this tragic death.”
