Newcastle hospital told woman whose unborn baby had died to go home and ‘book a slot to give birth’

A woman whose unborn baby had died was sent home from hospital with a booklet for bereaved parents and told to book a slot to give birth.

Danielle Brown, 31, and her partner, Anthony Miller, were delighted to be expecting a baby but seven months into the pregnancy, in February 2023, she fell ill and was diagnosed with pre-eclampsia. Monitoring by doctors at the Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI), Newcastle, had also raised concerns about Maisie’s heart rate.

A consultant obstetrician said Brown should remain in hospital until she gave birth, given her potentially life-threatening condition. However, she was discharged 24 hours later on 14 February after a review by a different consultant.

A day later, Brown phoned the RVI’s maternity assessment unit with more concerns but was told she probably had a stomach bug.

She insisted on being seen and returned to the hospital, waited 90 minutes to be assessed, and was told medics could not find Maisie’s heartbeat. The couple were then told that their baby had died.

Instead of delivering Maisie straight away, Brown said she was then “given a booklet for bereaved parents and told to book a slot to give birth”. She said: “Hearing that with no compassion angered me so much.”

Brown said she was devastated to have to return home knowing the baby she was carrying was no longer alive. “When it was confirmed Maisie had died, we burst into tears. Nobody explained what had happened to Maisie,” she said.

Brown spoke of her ordeal after being awarded an undisclosed settlement from Newcastle upon Tyne hospitals NHS foundation trust. The trust admitted a breach of duty and that Maisie would have survived had her mother not been sent home during her first admission.

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Source: The Guardian, 2 November 2026