A COUPLE have told of their ongoing heartache after hospital failings led to the death of their unborn daughter.

York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has apologised after Wendy and Chris Pratt lost the baby daughter they had struggled for six years to conceive.

They said they were overjoyed to learn a course of IVF treatment had been successful in 2009 but midwifery staff at Scarborough Hospital failed to recognise vital signs their baby Matilda was in distress, resulting in her being delivered stillborn in 2010 at 27 weeks premature.

The hospital trust has now agreed to pay an undisclosed settlement to the couple to cover the pain and suffering they have endured and to provide access to on-going psychological support.

Wendy, 36, a microbiologist from Filey, said: “No words can describe how devastating it was for Chris and I to lose Matilda; she was our first child and was so precious to us that we couldn’t believe she hadn’t made it. It felt like our world had fallen apart in front of us.

“I suffered from severe depression and I wasn’t able to focus on anything... Chris and I are still coming to terms with what happened to Matilda and I don’t think we will ever fully get over losing our first child."

Expert evidence commissioned by their lawyers Irwin Mitchell found that despite midwifery staff informing Wendy at 20 weeks pregnant that her baby was smaller than expected and that she would need to be closely monitored, it was another seven weeks before a CTG and a scan was provided for the baby.

On April 17, 2010, tests showed the baby had restricted growth and poor blood flow through the umbilical cord, but staff sought no second opinion and Wendy was told she could go home.

She readmitted herself as she could not feel the baby moving and on April 20 they were transferred to Leeds General Infirmary for another scan and a CTG. Due to the delay the baby’s prognosis was poor - Matilda's heart rate dropped and after she was delivered by emergency caesarean she could not be resuscitated.

Three further attempts at IVF have been unsuccessful but the couple said they hope to try again in the New Year.

York Teaching Hospital NHS Trust has accepted that had a repeat CTG trace been performed during Wendy’s admission on April 17, 2010, Matilda would, on the balance of probabilities, have been born alive.

Wendy said: “I have lost all faith in the midwifery staff at Scarborough Hospital and the Trust has made no effort to reassure Chris and I that lessons have been learnt to prevent anyone else from going through the same ordeal. It won’t turn back the clock but it will at least give us some peace of mind that Matilda’s death was not in vain.”

A spokesman for York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust said: "The Trust would like to take this opportunity to pass its sincerest apology to Mr and Mrs Pratt . Whilst we are pleased that a sum has been agreed, this was a personal tragedy for the family and we are very sorry when the care that our patients receive falls below the high standards we expect.

"Since these events, Scarborough Hospital has become part of York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, an organisation that attaches the highest priority to safe care. Any events such as these are taken seriously and investigated to ensure that we take the opportunity to learn lessons."