At least 45 baby deaths could have been avoided at two Kent hospitals, report into maternity care at NHS trust finds
At least 45 baby deaths could have been avoided at two Kent hospitals, a report into maternity services at an NHS trust has found.
Dr Bill Kirkup, chair of the independent inquiry into maternity at East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust said his panel had heard “harrowing” accounts from families receiving “suboptimal” care.
He said mothers had been ignored by staff and shut out from their own care.
“An overriding theme, raised us with time and time again, is the failure of the trust’s staff to take notice of women when they raised concerns, when they questioned their care, and when they challenged the decisions that were made about their care,” the report said.
The investigation into the care provided to women and babies examined more than 200 cases of poor care dating back to 2009.
It was commissioned in 2020 following growing concerns over the quality of care at the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital (QEQM) in Margate and the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford.
The report found that had care been given to nationally recognised standards, the outcome could have been different in 45 of the 65 baby deaths and different in 97 of the 202 cases assessed.
With 33 of those 45 baby death cases, the outcome would reasonably expected to have been different, while 12 might have been different.
Meanwhile, in 17 cases of brain damage, 12 (72%) could have had a different outcome if good care had been given, of which nine should reasonably have been expected to have had a different outcome.
In nearly half of all cases examined, good care could have led to a different outcome for the families.
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Maternity failings led to deaths
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“The panel has not been able to detect any discernible improvement in outcomes or suboptimal care, as evidenced by the cases assessed over the period from 2009 to 2020,” the report said.
“We have no doubt that these numbers are minimum estimates of the frequency of harm over the period.”
The report was chaired by Dr Kirkup, who also led the investigation in 2015 into deaths of mothers and babies at the Morecambe Bay NHS Trust.
In a press conference, Dr Kirkup said a culture of “deflection and denial” within NHS trusts when they are questioned about potential cases of substandard care is a “cruel practice” that “needs to be addressed”.
“This is a cruel practice that ends up with families being denied the truth,” he said.
“That’s a terrible way to treat somebody in the name of protecting your reputation.”
Harry Richford’s death was described as ‘wholly avoidable’
The family of Harry Richford, who died a week after he was born in November 2017, have been campaigning for answers after saying their concerns were repeatedly brushed aside by hospital managers. An inquest ruled his death was “wholly avoidable” and the trust was fined £733,000.
Last October, the Care Quality Commission (QCQ), which inspects hospitals, again expressed concerns over the trust, which it has repeatedly ranked as “requires improvement”.
It said during unannounced inspections in July 2021 that there were not enough midwifery staff members and maternity support workers to keep women and babies safe.
Inspectors said those working felt exhausted, stressed and anxious, while some community midwives had taken on additional work in the acute units, which meant they were sometimes working 20-hour days.
The government is expected to respond to the report later today.
Comedy writer Bill Dare, – who worked on shows including Spitting Image and Dead Ringers – has died after an accident overseas, his agent said.
Described as a “super producer” by his peers, Dare, 64, worked on eight series of hugely popular satire puppet show Spitting Image.
Airing on ITV during the 1980s and 1990s, the show delighted in lampooning public figures including politicians, celebrities and royalty, winning BAFTAs and Emmys. It was rebooted in 2020.
Dare also created Dead Ringers, a comedy impressions show broadcast on BBC Radio 4.
He also produced The Now Show, a satirical take on the news which ran on Radio 4 from 1998 to 2024.
Dare worked on a wide range of comedy shows during his career, including the radio production of The Mary Whitehouse Experience in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He had also written several novels.
In a statement released on Monday, his agent JFL Agency confirmed he died at the weekend.
A spokesperson said: “We are shocked and greatly saddened to have to announce the death of our brilliant client Bill Dare, who died at the weekend following an accident overseas.
“Our thoughts are with his wife Lucy, daughter Rebecca, and with all of Bill’s family and friends who will be devastated by his loss.
“Bill was a truly legendary producer and writer, and his comedy instincts were second to none.”
Oasis depicted on Spitting Image in 1996. Pic: ITV/Shutterstock
Colleagues were quick to pay tribute and reflect on his talent.
Impressionist Jon Culshaw wrote on X: “It’s impossible to express the unreal sense of loss at the passing of the incredible Bill Dare. The wisest comedy alchemist and the dearest, dearest friend. Much love to Lucy and all Bill’s family and friends. We shall all miss him more than we can say.”
David Baddiel posted on the social media platform: “Just heard that the original producer of The Mary Whitehouse Experience on radio, Bill Dare, has died. Bill was an amazing creative force. I owe him much. RIP.”
Former EastEnders actress Tracy-Ann Oberman said she was “devastated” and that her “entire comedy career was down to Bill”.
She wrote: “When I was on the BBC Radio 4 rep company early on in career – I ran into Bill in the corridors – He asked if I was good at accents. I said yes.
“He cast me in a sketch show. I had to do about 15 different accents. We recorded in front of a live audience at Broadcasting House – afterwards Bill said ‘Why have I never met you – you’re going to have a big career’.
“He was incredibly loyal and supportive and really opened a path for me into the R4 comedy world and then TV having come out of the RSC and theatre it was all new. I will always be grateful. Fly high Bill.”
Comedian and writer Mark Steel wrote: “This is so grim. Bill was a compassionate hearty soul with the ability to be beautifully grumpy, a marvellously thoughtful comic mind.
“He’d argue but always listen and you’d always laugh, he made a million shows and wanted them all to matter and would have made a million more.”
Have I Got News for You writer Pete Sinclair said: “I am utterly devastated by Bill’s death. I still can’t believe it. He was a comedy genius. A hugely talented writer as well as a brilliant producer. A close friend and co-writer. I cannot begin to say how much I’ll miss him.”
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Julia McKenzie, comedy commissioner for Radio 4, said: “I am so terribly sorry to hear this tragic news and my thoughts are with Bill’s wife, family and friends.
“Bill has been a huge part of Radio 4 comedy for decades, as a writer and producer, and listeners will have heard his legendary name at the end of many of their favourite shows.
“Bill was a comedy obsessive, and very instinctive about making the funniest choices when it came to writing, directing and editing.
“He cared so much about his work that in the production booth during Dead Ringers you’d see him crouched over the script, utterly focused on the show.
“He was funny and very dry in person, amusingly cynical when he needed to be and always pushed to keep the comedy he made, and particularly satire, spiky.
“I’ve known and worked with him for 18 years and like many I can’t believe he has gone, he will leave a big hole in the comedy world and in our hearts.”
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