Doctor who cared for premature baby Lucy Letby allegedly tried to murder tells jury decision not to transfer mother to more specialist hospital was correct

A doctor who cared for a premature baby girl who Lucy Letby allegedly tried to murder insisted yesterday that the decision not to transfer her mother to a more specialist hospital was the right call.

The mother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was admitted to the Countess of Chester Hospital when she went into labour unexpectedly – 15 weeks early – in February 2016.

Manchester Crown Court heard that, at that time, the hospital was designated to care for babies born after 27 weeks and ideally the infant, known as Baby K, should have been born elsewhere, in a more specialist unit where doctors and nurses were more experienced at caring for such premature infants.

But consultant obstetrician Dr Sara Brigham told the jury that the nearest neo-natal cot was 60 miles away in Preston and the risk of the 25-week gestation baby being born in the back of an ambulance was too great.

The medic said pre-term labour was ‘unpredictable’ and mothers could give birth faster than those at full term – going from the initial stages of labour to the baby arriving in just 30 minutes.

‘Before we put any of our mums in an ambulance we need to make sure they are not going to deliver in an ambulance,’ Dr Brigham said.

‘It was felt that she [Baby K’s mother] was advancing in labour, therefore unstable to put into an ambulance due to the risk she may deliver in the ambulance.’

Letby, 34, is accused of trying to murder Baby K by dislodging her breathing tube within two hours of her birth in the early hours of February 17, 2016.

By then, the neo-natal nurse had already murdered five babies - three boys and two girls - and would go on to murder two more boys from a set of triplets a few months later.

Jurors in the original trial failed to reach a verdict regarding the allegation that she tried to murder Baby K, and a retrial was ordered.

Prosecutors allege Letby was caught ‘virtually red-handed’ trying to kill Baby K by dislodging her breathing tube. They say senior consultant Dr Ravi Jayaram, who has appeared regularly on television, found Letby near the cot ‘doing nothing’ as the baby collapsed.

The court heard that Baby K’s mother was admitted to the Countess in the early stages of labour at around 10am on February 15, 2016.

Her labour continued to progress and tests revealed the baby was in the breach position – meaning she was likely to be born feet first - and, at around 3pm, Dr Brigham took the decision not to transfer her to another hospital.

But the court heard that Baby K wasn’t born for another 35 hours, at just after 2.10am on February 17. Ben Myers, defending, said: ‘As it happens, hindsight being a wonderful thing, Baby K wasn’t born for another 35 hours, so there would have been time (to transfer) had that decision not been taken.’

Dr Brigham replied: ‘I don’t think you can say that because she was lying in a bed – the act of transferring her across to a trolley and into an ambulance could cause the membranes to rupture. We know with pre-term labour... things can change very, very quickly.’

Mr Myers said: ‘So in your view it was the right decision?’ Dr Brigham said: ‘It was, yes.’

Letby, formerly of Hereford, denies one count of attempted murder. The trial continues.