A female hospital worker has been nabbed for murdering eight babies and trying to kill six others in the neonatal unit following a probe into…
A female hospital worker has been nabbed for murdering eight babies and trying to kill six others in the neonatal unit following a probe into infant deaths at the UK hospital.
The woman, who was only identified as a “health care professional,” was arrested Tuesday for the killing spree at Countess of Chester Hospital in Chester, England.
In May 2017, the hospital asked police to investigate a spike in its infant mortality rate — which it couldn’t explain — in the neonatal unit that houses premature babies and infants needing special care.
Cops were asked to rule out “unnatural causes of death.”
The probe initially focused on the deaths of eight babies, but authorities said Tuesday it now includes the deaths of 17 and 15 “non-fatal collapses” between March 2015 and July 2016.
A “non-fatal collapse” is when an infant’s health significantly and severely declines but the baby survives.
“Whilst this is a significant step forward in our enquiries it is important to remember that the investigation is very much active and ongoing at this stage,” said Detective Inspector Paul Hughes. “There are no set timescales for this coming to a conclusion but we remain committed to carrying out a thorough investigation as soon as possible.”
Hughes said all affected parents have been notified. He recognized that “at the heart of this, there are a number of bereaved families seeking answers as to what happened to their children.”
The surge in baby deaths prompted the hospital to stop delivering newborns before 32 weeks of pregnancy. Expectant mothers were transferred to other hospitals.
Two babies in the unit died in 2013, with three more the following year. Eight more deaths came in 2015 and five in 2015, according to the Guardian.
Ian Harvey, medical director of the hospital, said he’s confident the neonatal unit is now safe.
“Asking the police to look into this was not something we did lightly, but we need to do everything we can to understand what has happened here and get the answers we and the families so desperately want,” he said. “The Countess is now equivalent to a level one special care baby unit and we are confident the unit is safe to continue in its current form.”
A review by the Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health found that the staffing at the hospital was inadequate. It also found gaps in medical and nursing “rotas,” or staffing lists, and poor decision-making.
With Post wires
