Blundering hospital slammed over baby boy’s death

Joshua Titcombe was nine days old when he died from septicaemia in 2008 after a catalogue of errors at Furness General Hospital in Barrow, part of the University of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust.

Midwives assumed his temperature was low because the room was cold and claimed not to know a low temperature could be a sign of infection.

They failed to listen to the family’s pleas for help and Joshua’s observation chart went missing – a coroner later said it may have been deliberately destroyed.

In a scathing report yesterday, health service ombudsman Dame Julie Mellor upheld three out of four complaints made by Joshua’s father, James Titcombe, and grandfather against the trust.

She said change was needed “from the ward to the board” and the trust’s lack of honesty in handling complaints had caused the family “unnecessary pain and further distress”.

She examined emails sent by staff and midwives about the case, including one in 2009 from a midwife being investigated by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) entitled “NMC s**t.

This email was sent to a wrong address and contained personal details about the family.

The trust’s medical director at the time, Peter Dyer, told Mr Titcombe the email related to the ongoing NMC investigation and described it as a “comprehensive, professional account of the midwife’s recollection of events”.

Mr Titcombe said the family supported the report’s recommendations for change.

He added: “Joshua’s death has had an unbearable impact on our family, we miss him every day and continue to be haunted by the trauma of his short life and his horrific preventable death.

Trust chief executive Jackie Daniel said: “The trust acknowledges and fully accepts the findings of the ombudsman investigations.

“Clearly some of the actions highlighted by the ombudsman have caused further unnecessary distress and pain. This is completely unacceptable and we are truly sorry for this.”

Cumbria Police are still investigating Joshua’s death.