Baby Terminated By Accident After Hospital In Birmingham Commits 'Fatal Error'

A healthy baby was terminated by accident in a devastating mix up at Birmingham Women's and Children's NHS Foundation Trust.

The horrendous accident happened when a surgery took place in order to abort one twin that was found to be suffering from restrictive growth. Sadly the baby had not formed in the womb fully.

The devastating decision was made in order to save the life of the healthy twin - but doctors at the hospital accidentally terminated the wrong baby. Both infants tragically died.

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The horrific mistake is just one of 700 fatal errors made across NHS hospitals in England. A report into the mistakes was obtained via a Freedom of Information request made by the Sunday Express.

Dr Fiona Reynolds, chief medical officer at Birmingham Women's and Children's NHS Trust, said: "Sadly, during a highly specialised foetal procedure in 2019 that involved operating within the womb to separate and potentially save the life of a single twin that shared a placenta, a fatal error occurred.

“A full and comprehensive investigation was carried out swiftly after this tragic case and the findings were shared with the family, along with our sincere apologies and condolences.

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“The outcome of that thorough review has led to a new protocol being developed to decrease the likelihood of such an incident ­happening again.”

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists explained that the condition the poorly twin was suffering with happens when "one of the babies does not receive enough nourishment through the placenta to grow at a normal rate."

“In the most serious cases, selective termination can improve the survival chances of the normally grown foetus at the expense of the severely growth-restricted co-twin," he said.

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“Parents who undergo selective terminations of twin pregnancies face agonising decisions and report feelings of anxiety, stress and emotional trauma.

"They must be supported by their clinical team both during and after their pregnancy.”

If you have been affected by the content of this article, you can find support, advice and information at Sands.

Topics: Health, NHS, Parenting

Lucy Devine

Lucy is a journalist working for Tyla. After graduating with a master's degree in journalism, she has worked in both print and online and is particularly interested in fashion, food, health and women's issues. Northerner, coffee addict, says hun a lot.

@lucedevine