Senior midwife ‘given praise’ amid baby deaths scandal
The head midwife involved in a series of preventable baby deaths at Bacchus Marsh Hospital did not know how to interpret an electronic foetal monitor and failed to address the “lack of competence” among midwives, but some staff still praised her work, a tribunal has heard.
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The head midwife involved in a series of preventable baby deaths at Bacchus Marsh Hospital received “glowing reviews” from senior management amid the scandal, a tribunal has heard.
Mary Little, former nursing manager of the midwifery unit, is facing 11 allegations related to her actions at the hospital between 2008-14.
The allegations have been kept secret from the public but are considered “extremely serious”, and questions have been raised about whether the now 72-year-old was “fit” to be a registered practitioner.
Eleven stillborn and neonatal deaths at the hospital from 2001 were ruled avoidable after one of Australia’s biggest health inquiries.
The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal last week heard Ms Little did not know how to interpret an electronic foetal monitor and failed to learn from clinical reviews into baby deaths or engage in “open disclosure” with patients.
She also failed to address the “lack of competence” among midwives under her supervision during the scandal, the tribunal heard.
VCAT member Elisabeth Wentworth said: “She should have been on notice regarding the deficiencies of her own skills, and she failed to address the shortcomings of the midwives she was responsible for.”
“Each time there was a clinical review of a peri-natal death, there is an opportunity that is missed to recognise those deficiencies.
“It seems to us that this really takes it into the category of conduct that is inconsistent with being fit and proper.”
Ron Gipp, who represented Ms Little, said she did not appreciate the seriousness of problems within her staff at the time and more senior managers, including the former director of nursing Julia Meek, did not raise such issues and praised Ms Little’s work.
“Ms Little was not the only person in a managerial position at the facility at that time,” Mr Gipp said. “All that responsibility should not rest on Ms Little’s shoulders.
“She genuinely believed she was providing an appropriate level of care to her patients.”
Numerous medical staff, including head of obstetrics Surinder Parhar, resigned in the fallout of the scandal, which resulted in multimillion-dollar payouts to families who lost babies.
The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia wants Ms Little to be reprimanded and to agree to never work in the medical field again — though she is now retired. VCAT will give its decision at a later date.
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