Shrewsbury maternity scandal: Pay out over boy's brain injury

The health trust behind the worst maternity scandal in NHS history has accepted responsibility for a boy's brain injury.

Adam Cheshire, 11, contracted a Group B Strep (GBS) infection following his birth at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital in 2011.

A High Court judge approved a pay out from Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust (SaTH) to provide special care for the rest of his life.

His case was examined as part of senior midwife Donna Ockendon's investigation into SaTH which found catastrophic failures might have led to the deaths and life-changing injuries of hundreds of babies, as well as the deaths of nine mothers.

Adam, from Newport, Shropshire, was born nearly 35 hours after his mother's waters broke in the afternoon of 24 March 2011. 

In the hours that followed, he began to show signs of early onset GBS including struggling to feed, crying and grunting. After weeks in intensive care, he was finally diagnosed with the infection and meningitis.

Adam is living with multiple conditions including hearing and visual impairments, autism, severe learning difficulties and behavioural problems so he relies on others to care for him.

His mum, the Reverend Charlotte Cheshire, said she had expressed concerns about bright green discharge at one of her last antenatal appointments but no action was taken.

"From that point I just had a mother's instinct something wasn't right but I was reassured by the midwives so many times that everything was OK," the 45-year-old said.

Mrs Cheshire added: "While Adam is adorable and I am so thankful to have him in my life, it's difficult not to think how things could have turned out differently for him if he'd received the care he should have.

"Adam will never live an independent life and will need lifelong care. While I'm devoted to him, I'm now raising a severely disabled son, which is extremely challenging and has changed the path of both our lives forever".

Read full story

Source: BBC News, 23 January 2023