Mum lied to about son's Letby death probe - inquiry

The parent of 1 of the babies murdered by Lucy Letby astatine the Countess of Chester Hospital has told a nationalist enquiry she was lied to by a aesculapian director.

She said her lad - referred to arsenic Baby C - was calved 7 weeks premature and had been doing good until 1 nighttime helium suffered a cardiac apprehension and could not beryllium resuscitated.

Letby, 34, who was a caregiver connected the unit, had been seen lasting by his show arsenic the alarm sounded, adjacent though she had not been his designated nurse. She was convicted successful June 2023 of injecting aerial into his stomach.

The details of an probe into her son's decease did not uncover that suspicions had been raised surrounding Letby, the Thirwall Inquiry heard.

The parent of Baby C said the trust's past aesculapian director, Ian Harvey, told her astatine a gathering successful February 2017 a post-mortem introspection had recovered thing untoward astir her baby's decease and that helium could not person been saved.

Mr Harvey had already been warned that a subordinate of unit could beryllium progressive and Letby's sanction had been mentioned.

But successful the meeting, Mr Harvey told Baby C's parent staffing levels and statistic were being examined and failed to notation thing astir suspicions surrounding the nurse.

• What the nationalist enquiry heard successful its archetypal week
• Junior doctors called Lucy Letby 'Nurse Death'
• 'Tenacious' doctors stopped Letby's instrumentality to ward

The parent of Baby C, who was calved weighing 800g (1lb 12oz), told the inquiry: "I deliberation we were being kept successful the acheronian astir what had happened to our child.

"We were being fixed nary accusation whatsoever and uncovering things retired by accident.

"It is precise hard to explicate what this has done to our family. It was devastating.

"Losing our kid changed our perspectives connected life. Our grief volition beryllium life-long."

She said she was horrified erstwhile she yet recovered retired and that she had been lied to.

A reappraisal of the neonatal portion was carried retired by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health successful September 2016.

Two reports were aboriginal produced - 1 was marked confidential and included references to Letby - the different mentation did not.

At a aboriginal date, Baby C's parent was fixed the study and was led to judge it was the afloat papers but she told the enquiry it was "woeful, accusation was missing".

She said: "I felt they didn't privation to amusement america thing - particularly due to the fact that immoderate answers they whitethorn person recovered mightiness person wounded the spot successful immoderate way."

She said she mislaid each religion successful the infirmary and felt similar she was "banging my caput against a ceramic wall".

"There was a report, somewhere, into my dormant lad and they wouldn't fto maine person it. They wouldn't beryllium transparent and unfastened with me."

She said she was not handed the afloat study until 8 years aft her son's death.

She told the enquiry she knew thing astir the suspicions until she received a telephone telephone from the constabulary to informing her they had made an arrest.

"To not pass america until idiosyncratic is arrested was unforgiveable.

"There had been furniture upon furniture of probe and to get a telephone telephone retired of the bluish that idiosyncratic was being arrested was an implicit shock."

Kate Blackwell KC, successful her opening connection connected behalf of the erstwhile infirmary managers, including Mr Harvey, said the elder managers "have reflected connected their time" astatine the infirmary and would "continue to bespeak connected their actions and decisions arsenic the enquiry unfolds".

"As to the interaction betwixt immoderate elder mangers and immoderate parents, it is accepted with regret that this was inadequate some successful presumption of frequence and mode and that this has caused wounded and anxieties to those affected.

"For this the elder managers are profoundly sorry."

Mr Harvey and the different erstwhile elder managers astatine the Countess of Chester Hospital volition beryllium giving their grounds to the enquiry astatine a aboriginal date.

Letby, from Hereford, is serving 15 whole-life situation presumption aft she was convicted successful August 2023 of murdering 7 babies and attempting to execution 7 others betwixt June 2015 and June 2016.