WHEN Claire Derrick miscarried triplets in her 22nd week of pregnancy, she says she was denied the chance to nurse them.

All three were taken from the room on the Royal Gwent Hospital’s gynaecology ward immediately they were delivered, on April 20 this year, she says.

Only several hours later, after Ms Derrick, 24, had undergone post-delivery surgery, were she and partner Aaron Thomas, 32, able to see their bodies, the couple say.

The couple, of Lliswerry, Newport, are demanding to know why they were not given the chance to nurse the triplets who, because they were at less than 23 weeks gestation, were classed as miscarriages.

They were subsequently named Millie, Annabel and Rosie.

This is among a range of concerns about the handling of Ms Derrick’s case by Aneurin Bevan Health Board, which led the couple to formally complain and now, dissatisfied by the response, seek legal help.

Seven months on, their grief remains raw.

“I need to know what happened to my babies so I can move on,”

said Ms Derrick, who had to abandon an attempt to return to work as a manager at a fast food restaurant, because she remains too upset to cope.

“I want to know what happened from the time they left the room – where they were, who they died with, everything.

“Why do they think it’s OK for them not to be with their mum, or a member of the family?”

Ms Derrick went to the Royal Gwent on Wednesday April 17, after beginning to leak fluid.

She was examined and over the next two days, monitored, scanned and ordered to have bed rest.

The couple claim that at no stage from that Wednesday until Saturday, April 20, was the word ‘miscarriage’ mentioned to them by staff, despite the formal complaint response stating that the medical notes say this was discussed as a risk.

On the Friday afternoon Ms Derrick believes she had a ‘show’, a precursor to labour, and by early evening began to experience contractions.

After several hours’ intermittent severe pain, she was examined by a doctor who diagnosed a water infection.

After Mr Thomas and Ms Derrick’s father left late that evening, her pain eased, only to return.

She went to the toilet and realised she was delivering.

The first triplet was delivered at around 12.40am, the second and third at 2am and 2.10am, though notices of applications for the burial of foetal remains subsequently gave a common time of birth as 2.30am, an error for which the health board has “sincerely apologised.”

As Ms Derrick’s pregnancy was less than 22 weeks, it was recorded as a miscarriage.

With doctors and nurses focusing on Ms Derrick, who required surgery to remove the placenta, she kept asking what happened to the triplets.

“I wanted to know where the babies were, but nobody would tell me,” she said.

The first triplet was taken to the hospital’s neonatal unit as a staff nurse thought she looked big, given the pregnancy dates.

But neonatal care was not offered as the gestation period had been less than 23 weeks.

The couple also complained that staff did not immediately telephone Mr Thomas when Ms Derrick began to miscarry.

She said repeated requests were turned down, the call being made only after she attempted to do it herself with her mobile.

The health board, in its formal complaint response, states that during the 10 minutes after Ms Derrick began to miscarry, “staff felt they could not leave (her) to make the telephone call.”

However, it has ‘sincerely apologised’ that Mr Thomas, when contacted, was “not appropriately prepared” by the nurse who made the call, for the situation he encountered when he arrived.

Health board conveys condolences – but can’t comment on all the issues

THE health board has indicated that “as this case is now the subject of legal proceedings it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time.”

A statement however, says it “has conveyed our deepest condolences to the family for their sad loss.

“In response to a thorough investigation of the concerns raised with us by the family, we have apologised for any failures in communication that arose at the time.”

For Ms Derrick and Mr Thomas however, this does not go far enough.

“The biggest problem has been the lack of communication from the moment Claire went into hospital,” said Mr Thomas.

“We were getting mixed messages – that the babies were breathing, that they weren’t, that it was just reflex actions.

“We understand it should be the mother’s choice to have them at birth.”

Ms Derrick said she and Mr Thomas “just want to know what happened, and we don’t want anyone else to have to experience this.”

Following the couple’s complaint, the health board has modified a policy governing where women requiring admission to hospital during pregnancy are admitted.

Previously women whose pregnancies were less than 22 weeks would be admitted to the Royal Gwent’s gynaecology ward (B7) rather than its maternity department. Since the beginning of October however, if pregnancies are more than 20 weeks, women are admitted to the latter.