Are babies' deaths being incorrectly recorded?

Posted: 24/10/2022

A recent Telegraph investigation has found that babies' deaths in NHS hospitals are not being recorded properly. The investigation, reported on 16 October 2022, found several examples of babies who were born alive but, after they later died, were recorded as stillborn by the hospitals.

This not only affects families who have already suffered a tragic loss; it also has consequences for how the death can be investigated, and which lessons can be learnt for the future.

What is stillbirth?

A stillborn baby is defined as a baby who is born dead after 24 weeks of pregnancy. Stillborn babies are therefore never alive outside their mother’s body. If a baby dies before 24 weeks, this is known as a miscarriage.

If a baby is born alive (even in a poor condition), but then dies within 28 days, this is known as a neonatal death.

What did the investigation find?

The Telegraph investigation identified six babies in NHS hospitals who were incorrectly described as stillborn when their deaths were registered, despite having been born alive. Some of the babies lived for minutes, and one lived for five days. They reported that one obstetrician told the coroner that he had been pressured by his manager to incorrectly say that a baby had been stillborn.

Why is this important?

Whether a baby’s death is a stillbirth or neonatal death is an important distinction. For grieving families, being advised incorrectly about what happened to their child creates further distress at an already hugely difficult time.

The error also has practical consequences. The coroner is the official who can conduct or order an inquest into the manner and cause of certain deaths. As the Telegraph article points out, coroners are not able to carry out inquests into stillbirths. However, if a baby dies after it is born, the coroner can hold an inquest to find out what went wrong.

This has important implications for the families, who want to know why their child was lost, and for the hospitals, to learn from what happened and try to prevent future deaths.

The investigation was published just days before the report into failings in the maternity unit at East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust, which led to the deaths of 45 babies who may have otherwise survived. The report was published on 19 October 2022 and is discussed further in our article here.

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