Shanine Skilton-Cole’s baby Cobie suffered life-changing brain damage after doctors delayed an emergency C-section for 30 minutes at East Surrey Hospital
A baby was left with brain damage after medics waited 30 minutes before ordering a C-section – despite his mother’s desperate pleas for help.
Shanine Skilton-Cole, 26, was rushed to hospital after going into labour at 38 weeks. Medical staff initially raised concerns about her unborn son Cobie’s low heart rate and arranged tests. However, it took a full 30 minutes before a specialist obstetric review ordered an emergency caesarean at East Surrey Hospital in Redhill.
Baby Cobie arrived weighing 7lbs 9oz on July 18, 2022, but required resuscitation after being deprived of oxygen. He is thought to have suffered a placental abruption – a dangerous condition in which the placenta begins to detach from the womb wall.
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Cobie, now three, has cerebral palsy which has left him unable to walk or talk and needing round-the-clock care. Shanine said: “During labour I knew something wasn’t right.
“I was scared and didn’t feel listened to or reassured – I just wanted someone to take my concerns seriously.When Cobie was born he didn’t cry, and I was terrified. I was left not knowing what was happening. All I could say, over and over, was ‘Don’t let my baby die.'”
Cobie spent the first 84 days of his life in hospital and was later readmitted, remaining an inpatient until he was ten months old. Shanine, from Reigate, Surrey, said: “The months that followed were relentless. It was emotionally exhausting.
“Cobie spent much of his first year in hospital and our family felt torn apart during this time. Now we live with the reality of what can happen following maternity care failings. Cobie can’t hold his head up, he can’t swallow, he’s tube‐fed, he has had seizures and needs constant care.
“I used to say I wished one of my children could stay a baby forever, but this is not what I meant. This is not what I wanted. This isn’t the life I hoped for my son.”
Shanine, who is also mum to sons Beau, eight, and Arlo, five, instructed medical negligence solicitors Irwin Mitchell to examine Cobie’s care. It emerged that Shanine underwent two obstetric reviews after monitoring detected reductions in Cobie’s heart rate.
Following additional concerns about Cobie’s heart rate being raised at approximately 1pm, staff ought to have requested a further obstetric review at 1.05pm. Yet, this wasn’t sought until 1.35pm. Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust, which operates East Surrey Hospital, acknowledged a breach of duty.
The trust confirmed an obstetric review should have been requested sooner and Cobie ought to have been delivered 17 minutes earlier. The Trust is now collaborating with Shanine to secure a settlement to fund Cobie’s lifelong needs.
Shanine continued: “Despite everything that we’ve gone through I’m blessed that Cobie is my son. However, it remains incredibly difficult not to think that when Cobie needed help the most, he was badly let down by those who should have looked after him. Since Cobie’s diagnosis my focus has been on trying securing answers for him and trying to provide him with the best life possible.”
This follows research commissioned by Irwin Mitchell which revealed a quarter of mothers lack confidence in the safety and quality of maternity services. The survey of 1,145 adults across England and Wales, conducted by YouGov, discovered that 53 per cent of mothers encountered maternity care complications requiring additional support.
Some 27 per cent of those surveyed believed maternity services were deteriorating, compared to 22 per cent who felt they were getting better. Richard Kayser, the specialist medical negligence solicitor at Irwin Mitchell supporting Shanine and Cobie, commented: “Nothing signifies the human cost and devastation that families are left to face following maternity care failings more than Cobie’s story.
“Every second counts when delivering babies in distress. Cobie’s case is yet another example of the need for meaningful action to improve maternity services across the country.”
A spokesperson at Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust stated: “As a trust we work hard to ensure we deliver the safest possible care at all stages of pregnancy and are continuously looking at how we can improve our care. We would like to extend our deepest apologies to Cobie and his family for what happened. Due to the ongoing legal matter, we are unable to specifically comment on this individual case at this time.””
