A ‘devastated’ couple whose new-born died after doctors ‘dismissed’ her mother’s life-threatening internal bleeding as ‘trapped wind’ have demanded answers over their baby’s death.
Kimberley Newark, 31, went to Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath, Sussex, in excruciating pain on September 14, 2024, when she was 34 weeks pregnant.
Maternity staff put her symptoms down to trapped wind when Ms Newark was actually bleeding internally.
Hospital staff even told Ms Newark’s partner Yann Trupiano to go home and return the next day.
Shortly after Mr Trupiano left the hospital doctors discovered a major blood vessel near Ms Newark’s stomach had ruptured causing massive internal bleeding and a life-threatening loss of around 14 litres of blood.
Olivia was born via emergency C-section and had to be resuscitated as she was suffering from severe hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy – a condition that occurs when a baby’s brain does not receive enough oxygen or blood flow around the time of birth.
Ms Newark was placed in a coma and she and new-born Olivia were transferred to the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton.
Sadly, despite doctors best efforts, Olivia died just five days later on September 19 2024.
Kimberley Newark, 31, went to hospital in excruciating pain after a major blood vessel near Kimberley’s stomach had ruptured causing massive internal bleeding
Olivia was born via emergency C-section and had to be resuscitated as she was suffering from severe hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy
Speaking at a pre-inquest hearing into their baby’s death, Brighton based Ms Newark said she was ‘angry’ about what happened and said they are still suffering in the wake of their daughter’s loss.
She said: ‘We need to get answers as to why Olivia died, why I was dismissed and Yann – that it actually got to that stage.
‘We were 100 per cent dismissed and looking back in hindsight it actually makes me so angry to see everything that’s so clearly obvious.’
She said she and Yann would take their fight to the civil courts in a bid to ensure other families didn’t suffer similar tragedies.
The University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust maternity services are under investigation following a review commissioned by Health Secretary Wes Streeting.
It comes after nine bereaved families raised concerns over the deaths of their babies between 2021 and 2023.
Ms Newark and Mr Trupiano said their grief was made ‘so much worse’ by learning other families had also experienced losing babies.
The devastated couple believed hospital staff missed vital warning signs and instructed lawyers Slater and Gordon to investigate Olivia’s care.
Ms Newark said: ‘We want to fight for change to make sure this doesn’t happen to other families because ultimately it’s been awful for us and still is.’
Mr Trupiano said it was impossible for the family to get closure for their daughter’s death until the inquest process was over.
Ms Newark said she was ‘angry’ about what happened and said they are still suffering in the wake of their daughter’s loss
He said: ‘We don’t want that to take years. We can start to get closure once this is completed. But I think it’s important to take as much time as is needed to make sure that it’s properly investigated.’
Speaking earlier about how the doctors responded to her, Ms Newark said: ‘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 trauma of losing Olivia has also hit the rest of the family hard, including her two older children, aged eight and 10.
Ms Newark added: ‘This has absolutely devastated us. Our older children have struggled to understand why Olivia is not here with us and they are so young to have to try and 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 said they repeatedly raised concerns about Ms Newark’s deteriorating health but they felt ‘ignored and dismissed’.
Mr Trupiano 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.
Sadly, despite doctors best efforts, Olivia died just five days after she was born via emergency C-section
‘Shortly after I left, I was called to say she was having an emergency Caesarean and she was in a critical condition.
Clinical negligence solicitor Ayesha Hussain, who is acting for the family, said: ‘The loss of Olivia has been absolutely heart-breaking 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 University Hospitals Sussex NHS Trust spokesperson said two reviews of Olivia’s care had been carried out.
Earlier Dr Maggie Davies, chief nurse at the trust, said: ‘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 been told the family had concerns about the timing of the diagnosis of the ruptured artery.
