Still birth inquiry saves lives

The inquest into the death of Cara Rocks, who was stillborn, has already helped to save other lives, a court has heard.  The coroner involved in the inquest, the world’s first into a stillbirth, thanked the parents for their persistence in the case.

Cara Rocks was stillborn in 2013 at County Londonderry hospital. Cara’s mother Michelle had repeatedly requested a c-section during a hospital admission, yet doctors went against her wishes and proceeded with a natural delivery. Upon discovering that they had difficulty in hearing Cara’s heartbeat, a c-section was ordered, but Cara had sadly died.

The inquest has already heard how Michelle was a good candidate for a c-section, due to a previous c-section delivery, Cara presenting as a big baby, and in breech position. The Northern Health Trust have already accepted a series of failings, and apologised to the parents.

Following the inquest, Cara’s parents commented: “Cara has not been forgotten and we, as her parents, have persisted on seeking the truth. We have done what we had to do to get the truth.”

The Coroner thanked Cara’s parents, saying that he believed that maternity care had been improved as a result of the case.

For more on this story and for photo credit see BBC article here