A bereaved Aberdeen mum is suing NHS Grampian after hospital staff ‘withheld the ashes of her baby’ following her miscarriage.
Stephanie Reid, 39, claims she was unable to bury her daughter for two months after complaining about a procedure which allegedly caused her tragic loss.
She is now taking legal action, alleging Aberdeen Royal Infirmary conducted an “unnecessary” operation on her to remove her fallopian tubes after wrongly diagnosing her with an ectopic pregnancy.
Stephanie and her husband Scott, who have two children, were elated when they discovered she was pregnant in early April.
When she was six weeks pregnant she discovered blood, and attended Aberdeen Royal Infirmary on April 17 for a scan.
The sonographer failed to find a heartbeat and staff believed she was suffering from an ectopic pregnancy.
An ectopic pregnancy is when a fertilised egg implants itself outside of the womb; the egg can’t develop into a baby and is removed, usually along with the affected fallopian tube.
Stephanie, from Bridge of Don, was rushed to the operating theatre where she had the affected fallopian tube removed and a contraceptive coil fitted.
Stephanie was told beforehand that she would only be given the coil if an ectopic pregnancy was found.
The contraceptive coil should never be inserted when someone is pregnant, as it can lead to a miscarriage, premature birth or infection leading to miscarriage.
NHS Grampian admit wrong diagnosis
Ten days after the emergency surgery she was informed that a sample from the operation showed there was no ectopic pregnancy.
She had an ultrasound scan on the same day and a further scan on May 2 – both of which confirmed she was still pregnant.
NHS Grampian has since admitted that Stephanie should have been diagnosed with ‘pregnancy of unknown location’, instead of an ectopic pregnancy.
They also acknowledged that the original ultrasound images should have been reviewed and further samples taken, and that the care offered was not in line with local or national guidance.
Stephanie told The P&J: “I got a call from the hospital to say ‘there was no sign of an ectopic pregnancy’.
“I was still pregnant. However, when I had my fallopian tube removed, I agreed to a contraceptive coil to be inserted into my womb.
“I knew, and had been warned, that this could lead to a miscarriage.
“The two things are incompatible.”
Claims staff dismissed concerns she was still pregnant following surgery
Upon finding she was still pregnant, Stephanie had the coil removed.
She then sadly suffered a miscarriage on May 11.
She explained: “I was given two options when I was misdiagnosed, I should have been given three.
“The first option was an operation to remove my fallopian tubes, a second was an injection to end the pregnancy, and a third should have been to watch and wait.
“I would have waited, because I knew I was pregnant and carrying my third baby.
“Even after the first operation, I knew I was still pregnant – but no one believed me.
“Mistake, after mistake, after mistake was made in my care, and that of my baby.
“I should have had my case reviewed after the ectopic diagnosis; I should have had a second opinion on my scan.
“None of these things happened and it led to the death of my baby.”
Devastated Stephanie had already named her daughter Alisha Grace and asked staff for her remains.
She claims that she was then told by a member of staff that she was not to have her baby back due to raising a complaint about her care.
Stephanie said: “Staff would not allow me to have my baby.
“I was understandably upset and angry.
“It led to even more distress to me, and to my family.”
Alisha Grace’s remains were finally returned to Stephanie and Scott on July 19.
Some of her ashes were made into a necklace, which Stephanie wears to keep her daughter near to her at all times.
Devastated mum keeps daughter’s ashes in necklace to be near to her
Stephanie’s complaint to NHS Grampian was upheld and the health board made several recommendations regarding ectopic pregnancies going forward.
The devastated mum also plans to raise her misdiagnosis and subsequent alleged treatment with the Scottish Public Service Ombudsman.
She added: “Every Monday I should be another week pregnant, I would have been 30 weeks pregnant now.
“No woman should ever have to go through anything like this again, and I will fight my misdiagnosis and treatment all the way – so that no one else ever is told that they can not have their baby’s remains.”
An NHS Grampian spokesperson said: “While we cannot comment on individual patient cases or ongoing legal matters, it is important to highlight that clinicians take action in the best interests of their patients.
“They are often faced with complex presentations and life-threatening situations.
“If a concern about a person’s treatment arises, the care given to them is thoroughly reviewed and the findings of any review are set out in detail for the patient along with recommendations and lessons learned.”
