MANCHESTER, England — A baby girl who was allegedly attacked by nurse Lucy Letby made a “breakthrough” recovery after being transferred to a new hospital, jury has been told.
Prosecutors accuse Letby of twice tying to kill the boy, known as Baby H, in the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital.
The 32-year-old man is on trial in the UK for allegedly murdering seven babies and attempting to murder 10 others between June 2015 and June 2016.
A jury at Manchester Crown Court heard how Baby H, who was not named for legal reasons, suffered two collapses in the neonatal unit, one on September 26, 2015 and another the following day.
DOCTORS ‘CAN’T THINK OF A NATURAL CAUSE’ FOR PROJECTILE VOMITING FROM BABY ALLEGEDLY OVERFED BY NURSE LUCY LETBY
Neonatal nurse Lucy Letby, 32, allegedly murdered seven babies and attempted to kill 10 more.
(Credit: SWNS)
She was initially described as “fine” after being born six weeks ahead of schedule.
But Baby H’s mother recalled how nurses woke her up at dawn and rushed into her room in the maternity unit and told her to go immediately to the neonatal unit.
She and her husband were shocked after doctors told them their daughter had been put on a ventilator after suffering a collapsed lung.
Giving evidence through a written statement, Baby H’s mother said: “They explained that their first priority was that they had to take care of H.
“We accepted it, but we said it was a shock to arrive and find her with a ventilator.”
When she arrived at the neonatal unit, the mother was able to see the staff resuscitating Baby H and was told to “sit with her and hold her hand”.
Countess of Chester Hospital November 4, 2022.
(Charlie Purvey/Splash News for Fox News Digital)
Her husband said their daughter was “very strange in colour” and “very mottled”.
Staff managed to resuscitate baby H but could not explain why she suffered a sudden cardiac collapse, jury were told, with a consultant telling her parents he “could not guarantee” she would spend the night.
Baby H’s parents stayed by her incubator that day before going to sleep in a nearby room.
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Although Baby H stabilized, there was a knock on the door shortly after they had gone to bed. The staff advised them to return to the neonatal unit.
The mother said they “came across an almost identical scene” as medics worked to save her daughter.
A court sketch shows Lucy Letby appearing at Warrington Magistrates Court via video link on November 12, 2020.
(SWNS)
Baby H recovered a second time and was transferred to another hospital, where tests were performed to establish the cause of the two collapses.
From that point on, the jury heard, she improved dramatically.
Baby H was “more responsive and made leaps and bounds,” her father said.
She was well enough to return to the Countess of Chester hospital two days later and was eventually released.
Baby H, who is now 7 years old, has not experienced any long-term health problems or problems, the jury was told.
VIDEO SHOWS THE ROOM OF THE NEONATAL UNIT WHERE LUCY LETBY ALLEGEDLY MURDERED THE BABY
Letby’s attorney, Benjamin Myers, told the jury that Child H’s unexplained collapses were the result of “suboptimal care” at the hospital and had “nothing to do” with the defendant.
A police officer leaves Lucy Letby’s home in Chester, England, on July 3, 2018, after she was arrested on suspicion of murdering or attempting to murder babies.
(Anthony Devlin/Getty Images)
It is alleged that the insertion of a chest tube following Baby H’s collapsed lung may have contributed to his cardiac arrest.
Consultant pediatrician Dr Ravi Jayaram, who carried out the procedure, rejected claims that he had put the drain in the “wrong place” causing an internal “risk”.
But Myers noted that Baby H, who had needed three doses of adrenaline as doctors battled for 20 minutes to resuscitate her, received three chest tubes, which was “very unusual” for a baby.
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He added that the drain inserted by Dr. Jayaram was placed in a “suboptimal” position and should have been inserted in the fifth intercostal space, which is around the armpit area. The trial continues.
