‘Doctors wouldn't save my premature son’

A heartbroken young mum says medics did nothing to help save her baby’s life because he was born within the period where he could technically have been aborted.

Carlie Underhill’s son Kian-John, was born at just 22 weeks, which is two weeks before the cut-off for abortions, and was alive for almost an hour before he passed away in his mum’s arms.

The 23-year-old says doctors and midwives automatically classed the birth as a miscarriage, and did not intervene to give him a chance of survival despite her claims he was born alive and breathing.

“When Kian-John was first born and I found out he was alive I was so elated,” Carlie, from Hereford, UK, says.

“It was unexpected, and I thought he had a chance, and that they would help me. He was breathing and kicking around.

“But when they told me he was still classed as a miscarriage and there was nothing they would do, my world fell apart.”

Completely devastated, Carlie says, “I was crying and sobbing and begging for them to help but the nurse just stood there, felt his back every ten minutes, and said 'not yet'.

“It's so frustrating and sad, and I felt so helpless.

“They should help any person who is alive and needs them. Just to leave someone suffering and struggling is inhuman.”

Carlie, who is a full time mother to three-year-old Michael and four-year-old Olivia, began to suspect something was wrong with the pregnancy at 16 weeks when she went into her local maternity triage at Hereford County Hospital with bleeding.

At 20 weeks, scans revealed that her placenta had begun to detach from the womb and she had erosion of the cervix. One week later she began to experience pain similar to contractions.

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Carlie says that at first midwives did not believe her, but that evening she was examined by a doctor who confirmed she was going into labour.

“I had been through labour twice before, so I knew what my body was telling me,” she says.

“It was really hard to get them to see me. I had to measure and record my own contractions to convince them I was having them.

“The doctors were shocked when they found out I was going into labour, but I wasn't at all. I knew it.”

Three days later her baby was born. He weighed just 200g and was only 25cm long.

According to Carlie, he was kicking, moving and breathing, and she held him to her chest.

Despite her pleas for medics to help, only a midwife remained in the room so she could confirm the time of death.

“It seemed incredibly heartless,” Carlie said.

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“She just stood there and did nothing. She did not offer any comfort, but just kept checking to see if Kian-John had died.

“I felt so helpless and lonely.

“It was almost worse when I got home. My daughter was really involved and came to all my scans with me.

“I went into hospital pregnant and came out without a baby, and she was devastated. She had lost her little brother.”

Carlie is now arguing for a change in the guidelines to stop other parents going through what she has been through.

She claims that a baby born at 21 weeks survived in the United States, and that doctors should fight to save every life.

“If they had fought to save my baby, I could have had closure,” she says.

“I would not have asked for him to be resuscitated. That would have been too much. But he was alive and fighting.”

A spokesperson for the Wye Valley NHS Trust said, “A premature birth is a traumatic moment for any parent. The trust understands this and has maternity staff trained to support parents and their families when these events occur.

“As with other NHS trusts, Wye Valley NHS Trust abides by the framework for clinical practice laid down by the British Association of Perinatal Medicine (BAPM), which covers procedures when babies are born at less than 26 weeks of gestation.

“Although some premature babies born at 24 weeks do survive, only in extremely rare cases have babies born at 22 weeks survived because their lungs and other vital organs are not developed enough.

“The BAPM guidelines state than in the best interests of the baby, standard practice is for resuscitation not to be carried out.

“In these situations most families want to spend the short time that their baby may be alive holding the baby – this is usually what is offered.

“During the obviously sensitive, yet important time, maternity staff remain attentive and available to support the parents and their family.”'

- With additional reporting from Caters News

For support on miscarriage, stillbirth and newborn death you can visit Sands

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