Pregnant women who took an epilepsy drug and say they were not warned of possible birth defects, feel a mix of "guilt" and "anger," one mother has said.
Sodium valproate, which is also used to treat bipolar disorder, external, can cause physical harm in the womb and children can be born with a cleft palate and spina bifida, external as well as neurodevelopmental disorders.
The medicine now carries warnings about use during pregnancy, but Susan Jamison, now 60, said she was not told about the possible consequences when she was expecting babies in 1990s.
A 2020 review recommended compensation to those affected, and a subsequent report in 2024 said there was an "urgent" need for redress for those harmed.
It is thought thousands of children in the UK have been left with disabilities caused by valproate since the 1970s.
Of the estimated 20,000 people across the UK, external affected about 500 to 600 are in Northern Ireland.
"All the women feel guilty," said Susan.
"The government knew that it [sodium valproate] caused problems and it was still continued to be licensed for usage for pregnant women," she said.
In June, England's first patient safety commissioner, Dr Henrietta Hughes, wrote to then Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, external expressing disappointment that there had not been a "substantive response" from the government to the calls for redress. She has still not received a response to her 16 July deadline.
Back living in Northern Ireland, it was only after the 2020 publication of the Cumberlege Report, , externalthat Susan says she got "closure".
But six years on from the initial report, families are waiting for redress.
"I'm angry. Parents are not getting any younger and we need to set out a care path for our children. It needs to be sorted quickly," Susan said.
"If I am no longer here Anna will have proper housing and medical care which she will need all her life," she added.
Source: BBC News, 12 August 2026
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