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| Mother and baby fell to deaths ‘before hospital reported them missing’ | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Medical staff did not alert police that a vulnerable new mother with a history of mental health problems had vanished until almost 40 minutes after she walked out of a hospital in her slippers, carrying her child in a blanket, an inquest has heard. | Medical staff did not alert police that a vulnerable new mother with a history of mental health problems had vanished until almost 40 minutes after she walked out of a hospital in her slippers, carrying her child in a blanket, an inquest has heard. |
| Charlotte Bevan and her four-day-old daughter, Zaani Tiana Bevan Malbrouck, had already reached the gorge where they fell to their deaths 10 minutes before the hospital called the police. | |
| Bevan, who had schizophrenia and depression, had stopped taking medication so that she could breastfeed her child, the inquest was told. | Bevan, who had schizophrenia and depression, had stopped taking medication so that she could breastfeed her child, the inquest was told. |
| Zaani’s father, Bevan’s partner Pascal Malbrouck, claimed she had been given contradictory advice about stopping taking her drugs. | |
| Bevan, 30, vanished from St Michael’s hospital in Bristol with her baby shortly before Christmas last year and the bodies of mother and child were subsequently found in the Avon Gorge close to the Clifton suspension bridge. | Bevan, 30, vanished from St Michael’s hospital in Bristol with her baby shortly before Christmas last year and the bodies of mother and child were subsequently found in the Avon Gorge close to the Clifton suspension bridge. |
| Avon coroner’s court heard that Malbrouck had asked nurses to keep an eye on the pair as he left them at 8.25pm on 2 December. At 8.36pm she was seen leaving the hospital, and half an hour later CCTV footage caught her walking up to the Clifton Observatory near the gorge. | |
| The inquest heard that staff at St Michael’s contacted police to say Bevan and her baby were missing at 9.14pm. DC Russ Jones of Avon and Somerset police said: “Of relevance to this inquest is that police received the call from the hospital at 21.14 hours. That was probably too late to find Charlotte and Zaani before they had fallen to their deaths.” | The inquest heard that staff at St Michael’s contacted police to say Bevan and her baby were missing at 9.14pm. DC Russ Jones of Avon and Somerset police said: “Of relevance to this inquest is that police received the call from the hospital at 21.14 hours. That was probably too late to find Charlotte and Zaani before they had fallen to their deaths.” |
| Outlining Bevan’s mental health history, Dr Farida Ahmad, of Bevan’s GP surgery in Cotham, Bristol, said her father died from a brain tumour in 2000, when she was 15, leaving her traumatised. Bevan suffered from depression and paranoid psychotic episodes and was prescribed the antipsychotic medication risperidone. | Outlining Bevan’s mental health history, Dr Farida Ahmad, of Bevan’s GP surgery in Cotham, Bristol, said her father died from a brain tumour in 2000, when she was 15, leaving her traumatised. Bevan suffered from depression and paranoid psychotic episodes and was prescribed the antipsychotic medication risperidone. |
| In April 2014, Bevan visited the surgery with Malbrouck, announced she was pregnant, and was advised not to stop the medication. A pregnancy care plan was drawn up with mental health services in July. In November Bevan told a midwife she had stopped taking her medication. | |
| Malbrouck described his partner as “very caring, very joyful” when she was well and taking her medication but a month before she was due to give birth, he said Bevan became concerned whether she could breastfeed while taking risperidone. | Malbrouck described his partner as “very caring, very joyful” when she was well and taking her medication but a month before she was due to give birth, he said Bevan became concerned whether she could breastfeed while taking risperidone. |
| “Charlotte was told she wouldn’t be able to breastfeed due to the medication she was taking,” he said. “She was told the baby’s liver couldn’t cope with the drug. Charlotte was really upset about this. | “Charlotte was told she wouldn’t be able to breastfeed due to the medication she was taking,” he said. “She was told the baby’s liver couldn’t cope with the drug. Charlotte was really upset about this. |
| “I felt she was given a lot of contradicting advice from doctors, midwives and the internet. I told her she didn’t have to breastfeed but she was really adamant she wanted to. I think that’s why she stopped taking it.” | |
| Malbrouck said he spent visiting hours with his partner and new baby and raised concerns to nurses that she was “not well”. | Malbrouck said he spent visiting hours with his partner and new baby and raised concerns to nurses that she was “not well”. |
| “On the day of the birth she was happy but then became worse and worse and worse,” Malbrouck said. | “On the day of the birth she was happy but then became worse and worse and worse,” Malbrouck said. |
| “I could see she was more and more unresponsive. She didn’t talk much. She was texting me at three and four in the morning telling me: ‘I can’t sleep, I want to go home’. | “I could see she was more and more unresponsive. She didn’t talk much. She was texting me at three and four in the morning telling me: ‘I can’t sleep, I want to go home’. |
| “I said to staff that Charlotte was not well. She didn’t eat anything. It was really difficult to see. She was in such pain and discomfort and nothing much was done.” | “I said to staff that Charlotte was not well. She didn’t eat anything. It was really difficult to see. She was in such pain and discomfort and nothing much was done.” |
| Bevan told him she had slept for just five hours in the three days after the birth. “The last time I saw Charlotte,” Malbrouck said, “she said: ‘I’m going to sleep now.’ I said: ‘OK.’ | |
| “I went because she was tired. I went to see the nurse and said: ‘Please keep an eye on Zaani and Charlotte.’ ” | “I went because she was tired. I went to see the nurse and said: ‘Please keep an eye on Zaani and Charlotte.’ ” |
| Bevan’s sister, Janet Tibbs, said she had visited her sister in hospital after she had given birth to Zaani and was concerned at her mental and physical state. | |
| Tibbs said: “She looked sketchy and on edge. Her eyes were bulging and she was unwilling to hold Zaani. I was worried for Zaani, but never thought Charlotte would harm her.” | Tibbs said: “She looked sketchy and on edge. Her eyes were bulging and she was unwilling to hold Zaani. I was worried for Zaani, but never thought Charlotte would harm her.” |
| Search teams located the bodies of Bevan and Zaani at the Avon Gorge below the Clifton Observatory on 3 and 4 December respectively. Postmortem examinations concluded Bevan died from multiple injuries, while Zaani’s death was caused by head injuries consistent with a fall. | Search teams located the bodies of Bevan and Zaani at the Avon Gorge below the Clifton Observatory on 3 and 4 December respectively. Postmortem examinations concluded Bevan died from multiple injuries, while Zaani’s death was caused by head injuries consistent with a fall. |
| The inquest continues. | The inquest continues. |
| • In the UK, the Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Hotline is 1-800-273-8255. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14. Hotlines in other countries can be found here. |