\n<\/p>\n
When Poppy Russell died shortly after birth, her parents were left bereft.<\/b><\/p>\n
What followed made matters harder to bear – her mother was blamed for the death.<\/p>\n
An inquest would later conclude that Poppy’s death was preventable.<\/p>\n
But instead of walking away from the trust that had failed them, Neil and Katie Russell are now working with it to bring compassionate care back into the NHS.<\/p>\n
“We could have very easily been consumed by hate and anger and rage at what happened \u2013 and those feelings are still there,” said Katie. <\/p>\n
“But if no change comes from what happened to Poppy, then what’s the point?”<\/p>\n
Poppy Russell died in April 2021 at the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford. <\/p>\n
She was just 12 hours old. <\/p>\n
During her pregnancy her mother told midwives that she had tokophobia, a fear of natural birth and wanted a caesarean section. <\/p>\n
Katie said she was repeatedly told however that she “couldn’t just ask for a c-section.”<\/p>\n
When she went into labour, Katie was induced and then “we were left in a room for long periods of time where I had no care,” she explained. <\/p>\n
“Finally, when we got into the labour suite, I wasn’t monitored appropriately and they missed signs that Poppy was in distress.”<\/p>\n
In a bitter irony, Poppy had to be delivered by emergency caesarean. <\/p>\n
By then however, she had developed a hypoxic brain injury and died later the same day. <\/p>\n