A heartbroken mum's newborn baby tragically died days after she was told by medical staff that she had "trapped wind". Kimberley Newark rushed to hospital in agonising pain while 34 weeks pregnant.
She claims maternity staff attributed her symptoms to trapped wind when she attended Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath, Sussex, on September 14, 2024. Kimberley, 32, was actually bleeding internally, placing both her and her baby daughter Olivia Trupiano in grave danger.
Hospital staff even instructed Kimberley's partner Yann Trupiano to head home and come back the following day. Moments after Yann departed the hospital, doctors made the alarming discovery that a major blood vessel near Kimberley's stomach had ruptured.
This was causing catastrophic internal bleeding and a life-threatening loss of approximately 14 litres of blood. Olivia was delivered via emergency C-section, but was suffering from severe hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy.
The condition develops when a baby's brain is deprived of adequate oxygen or blood flow around the time of birth. Kimberley was put into a coma and both Olivia and her mum were moved to the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton. Despite medics' best efforts, Olivia tragically passed away just five days later on September 19.
Kimberley explained: "I went to the hospital because I had fainted, was weak, dizzy and in excruciating pain - pain I knew was not normal. They told me I had trapped wind and administered Buscopan alongside pain relief and IV fluids. My pain never subsided and it turned out I was bleeding internally."
The heartbreak of losing Olivia has profoundly affected the entire family.
Kimberley, who has two other children, continued: "This has absolutely devastated us. Our older children - now aged eight and ten - have struggled to understand why Olivia is not here with us and they are so young to have to try to process something like this.
"It has also had a huge impact on our relationship as we attempt to grieve for our daughter. It has been devastating in so many ways.
"We want a clear explanation of why this occurred and why our concerns were not acknowledged. We, along with the other families in the same position, need transparency and answers."
The couple stated they continuously voiced worries about Kimberley's worsening condition, but felt "ignored and dismissed".
Yann said: "Our daughter died and Kimberley nearly died too – I put my trust in the medical staff. I was told to go home overnight and come back in the morning and believed that Kimberley was in safe hands. Shortly after I left, I was called to say she was having an emergency Caesarean and she was in a critical condition."
Olivia required resuscitation at birth and was diagnosed with severe hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy. The maternity services of the University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust are currently under scrutiny following a review ordered by Health Secretary Wes Streeting.
This follows concerns raised by nine grieving families over the deaths of their babies between 2021 and 2023. Kimberley and Yann expressed that their sorrow was "so much worse" upon discovering that other families had also suffered the loss of their babies.
The heartbroken couple believe hospital staff overlooked crucial warning signs and have engaged law firm Slater and Gordon to probe into Olivia's care.
Ayesha Hussain, a clinical negligence solicitor representing the family, said: "The loss of Olivia has been absolutely heartbreaking for Kimberley and Yann and they have so many unanswered questions over what went so wrong in the care they received. The fact that Olivia is one of several babies who died within University Hospitals Sussex's maternity services, whose deaths are subject to many questions, is deeply concerning and these families deserve full support and transparency from the NHS Trust. We will be beside Kimberley and Yann every step of the way in finding the answers they need and deserve."
A spokesperson for the University Hospitals Sussex NHS Trust confirmed that two reviews into Olivia's care have been conducted.
Dr Maggie Davies, the chief nurse at the trust, told the BBC: "We are desperately sorry for the loss of Olivia, and the trauma and grief we know this has caused everyone in the family. But we absolutely understand that nothing we can say can change the intense sense of loss they feel."
A coroner's court has previously heard that the family had concerns about the timing of the diagnosis of the ruptured artery. At a pre-inquest review, the coroner, Joanne Andrews, stated she had reasons to suspect Olivia's death was "unnatural" and would therefore conduct an inquest.
An initial hearing occurred at a coroner's court in Brighton in July of the previous year.
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