Midwives leave Nottinghamshire mother in agony for 40 minutes, inquest hears

A woman from Nottinghamshire tells an inquest she heard maternity staff discussing how many sweets they’d eaten while she waited in agony for 40 minutes.

Amelia Bradley eventually gave birth to her son Theo by emergency caesarian at Kings Mill Hospital in Sutton in Ashfield on September 14th, last year.

He'd been starved of oxygen and suffered a brain injury and the following day he died in his parents arms surrounded by his family.

Appearing at Nottingham Coroner’s Court, Ameila told an inquest of how she went into hospital on the evening of the September 13th, 2023.

She said after an hours wait she was finally seen by a midwife and sent home to Kirkby in Ashfield.

In the early hours, Amelia said she experienced severe pain and a lot of blood and went back to hospital.

Amelia told the inquest, that she was put into a triage room but it took 40 minutes to be seen by a midwife - even though the ward was quiet and patients should be seen within 15 minutes.

In that time, her partner Luke was shouting for help but no one came. Ameila recalled hearing staff chatting with one saying "I can't believe how many Harribo's I've eaten tonight."

Eventually when she was seen, Theo's heartbeat was found to be low and she was rushed to theatre.

The inquest also heard from two midwifes on duty that night. One had gone to do checks on equipment just as Ameila was on her way to hospital - that she admitted was a mistake.

Another midwife said she mistakenly believed another colleague had gone in and check on Amelia.

When asked by the coroner, if she'd do anything different, she replied "I'd do everything differently today."

Amelia, told the inquest of how she felt when she found out she was becoming a mother was the "greatest gift we could've possibly received".

Now she says she struggles to trust health professionals and fears what could happen if she falls pregnant again.

The inquest continues tomorrow and is set to last until Friday (5th July).

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