Midwife struck off after death

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A community midwife who failed to spot infection in a new mother who later died of septicaemia has been struck off the professional register.

Lucy Godwin, 52, from Narberth, Pembrokeshire was found guilty of professional misconduct.

A Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) hearing was told how Ms Godwin failed in her care of the 23-year-old mother-of-two and of other failings.

The panel's chair said her conduct was "unworthy of a registered midwife".

The conduct and competence committee of the NMC was told when Ms Godwin paid a home visit on the mother, known only as Patient A, she had a pulse rate of 140 when it should have been 80.

Patient A, who had given birth to a boy four days early, was also hot and flushed, had a tender abdomen, was suffering from shivers, and was not producing breast milk.

Suspended

But the committee heard the midwife told the mother she had a virus and to call her GP if she felt any worse.

Patient A died after she was admitted to hospital early the following day - 9 August, 2005.

Ms Godwin, who did not attend the hearing, was working as a community midwife for the then Pembrokeshire and Derwen NHS Trust.

The committee heard that in September 2005 Ms Godwin was suspended from duty by the trust.

The case first went before the NMC the following November and an interim "conditions of practice order" was imposed.

Post-birth infection

Her suspension was then lifted and she returned to work under supervision, at Withybush Hospital in Haverfordwest, on 3 January 2006.

But further incidents raised concerns about her performance and the matter went back before the NMC.

As well as finding Ms Godwin guilty of professional misconduct in failing to heed or act upon the fact Patient A was displaying symptoms consistent with a post birth infection and/or sepsis, four other charges were proven.

It was found that after returning to work under supervision, Ms Godwin incorrectly labelled blood samples from a mother and baby, and then failed to take steps to correct it.

She also failed to adequately monitor the labour of a high-risk patient and failed to recognise when another patient was in labour.

Depression

The final failure involved the midwife not adequately monitoring a woman in labour and not being present during delivery.

Ms Godwin said in a statement read to the committee that she was not the only one not to notice Patient A's symptoms.

She said two other midwives who visited on previous days, and later a doctor, also missed the signs of septicaemia.

Ms Godwin said she had suffered from depression since her involvement in Patient A's death, and her doctor felt she was suffering post traumatic stress disorder and low self-esteem.

She said she believed her poor performance in 2006 resulted from her poor mental health.

Referring to all five charges, the chair of the NMC panel, Sue Sauter, said Ms Godwin's conduct was "unworthy of a registered midwife".