The family of a 14-year-old girl left brain damaged by a catastrophic birth delay has been awarded £20 million compensation for lifetime care.
The girl, who cannot be identified under a court order, was born at Northwick Park hospital in Harrow in 2006.
Her mother had been induced amid concerns about pre-eclampsia but was left on a labour ward for four days while midwives failed to recognise that her baby was in distress in the womb.
She was floppy and unresponsive when born due to oxygen deprivation and acute asphyxia and was later diagnosed with cerebral palsy. She can only communicate with people who know her well and walk a few steps unaided.
Hugh Mercer QC, sitting as a deputy judge of the High Court last week, paid tribute to the girl’s parents who have given up their careers to look after their family. As a result of the continuous devotion, the girl is a thriving child, the judge said.
The hospital, whose maternity services were heavily criticised by the Healthcare Commission in 2011 for systematic failures, weak leadership and poor quality of care, admitted it had breached its duty of care and apologised to the girl’s family. The hospital trust admitted that had they delivered her earlier, she would not have been brain damaged.
Jane Weakley, a specialist birth injury lawyer at Fieldfisher, said there was a need to improve trust in maternity services across the wider NHS.
“That demands proper funding for training and provision of safe levels of staffing in maternity wards, something that is absolutely fundamental to keeping mothers and babies safe,” she said.
