Our team submitted a freedom of information request to NHS Resolution, which showed that “between the financial years 2012/13 and 2022/23, NHS trusts settled over 900 medical negligence claims relating to stillbirths – paying out £44.1 million in damages, an average of £99,817 per case, and a further £48.9 million in legal fees”.
The data also revealed significant pay outs by trusts recently under the spotlight for maternity wards that are falling below safety standards.
Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, which is currently undergoing an independent review, has paid out more than £4.3 million in damages and legal fees over the past 11 years. The mistakes led to 15 babies being stillborn.
Leaked emails highlighted issues at University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, which, according to the FOI data, paid out more than £1.6 million in damages and fees across 18 cases.
Hitting headlines following the Ockenden review in 2022, Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust reported seven settled claims – with damages and fees surmounting to more than £1.3 million.
University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust, which was subject to an investigation following serious incidents in maternity services, reported nine cases. Damages and fees paid totalled almost £830,000.
Nikki Fahey, our medical negligence partner said: “While the Ockenden Report focused on failings in Shrewsbury and Telford, its findings appear indicative of maternity services across the country, which is further highlighted by the fact that more than one baby in England is at risk of being stillborn due to negligence each week.
“Failures in care are being repeated because lessons are not learned. There has to be change and there has to be candour when mistakes are made.
“Not all stillbirths are preventable. Some can be caused as a result of complications with the placenta, diabetes, high blood pressure, infection or lack of oxygen to the baby.
“Negligence occurs when medical professionals fail in providing an acceptable standard of care for their patients, such as mothers not being monitored appropriately during their pregnancy, a pre-existing history of diabetes or high blood pressure not being properly monitored, or failing to diagnose and treat an infection.
“Our NHS is fantastic. While the first duty of a healthcare system is to do no harm, sometimes things do go wrong and care falls below medical standards. Medical negligence claims play a critical role in safeguarding patients against negligent treatment.
“In all my cases, clients are predominantly seeking to establish the truth, an apology and to ensure healthcare professionals learn from their own tragic experiences to prevent making the same mistakes in the future.
“Suffering a stillbirth is extremely traumatic and while no amount of compensation can change the pain negligence causes, one of the key reasons parents decide to make a claim is to ensure they do not suffer financially.
“The amount of compensation depends on each individual scenario, but can include loss of earnings, expected future financial losses, care and support, therapy and counselling, travel costs, childcare, and funeral expenses.”
