A mum has hit out at a local hospital for the poor treatment she received after the stillbirth of her son.
Sarah Lucas' son Hugh Thomas was born sleeping at just 17 weeks in Craigavon Area Hospital on March 16, 2022.
Already enduring unimaginable pain, Sarah and her partner were "appalled" at the "lack of compassion" they received from staff at the hospital.
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Three months on, their distress is ongoing as they continue to receive letters calling them in for antenatal appointments.
Sarah is speaking out in a bid that the hospital will review their services for bereaved families to improve treatment and follow up care.
"The idea of another family having to go through this just isn't on," she told Belfast Live.
"Every single thing they've done is preventable, and that's the frustrating thing about it.
"We found out we were pregnant in December, and everything was normal. 12 week scan was fine, he was a healthy, happy baby, moving around and kicking about.
"We went back for a 17 week appointment and was told there was no heartbeat. At that appointment, the doctor was nice and said they would have to confirm it so they brought us back for an appointment the next day. At the following appointment, they said they would be bringing us in to have the baby.
"We asked what happens now? What's the baby going to look like, what can we expect? We got absolutely no information. Nothing was given to us. I was told my partner would be able to come in and that they would have a room sorted for us.
"The only thing handed to us at that appointment was a form about a post-mortem, there was no information on what the process would be or what we would be going through, or any form of bereavement support.
"I've got other children and my partner has a child from a previous relationship, and there was no information to help us tell them. All of these little things, even when you go into labour you normally get a hospital bag list, there was nothing like that. We went into this completely blind, we've never been through anything like this before."
Upon arriving at the hospital preparing to give birth, Sarah said her and her partner were shocked at the facilities in place for them.
She said: "I used to work in maternity over in Manchester so I knew about the bereavement suite they had there. It was like a little home from home unit, like a little flat almost where you had a cold cot, you could be in there for as long as you needed.
"You could have your family there, and there was a bed for your partner to sleep in. That's what I was expecting, but when we turned up it was around two or three hours before the doctor actually saw us, and we were put into a little side room on a general medical ward.
"We walked into this side room and there was no sofa, there was a chair but no pull out bed for my partner or anything, and there was a bed for me. There was no gas and air on the wall or anything, it was just a bog standard general side room.
"Apparently this is where everybody goes, no matter what gestation you are during your pregnancy, even if you're 35 weeks and your baby dies, you have to go into this little side room and give birth to your baby. Not even on the maternity ward. If it was, you would be equipped with people trained to deal with you, but the people coming to see us were just general medical nurses and students."
Sarah said the way they were treated by staff at the hospital was "appalling", with staff not even asking her partner's name, despite him being present throughout the eight hours of labour.
As well as this, she said she was not given adequate pain relief despite asking for more.
"I started going into labour and asked for gas and air. They were just offering me paracetamol, but it is a labour, you're still passing a baby," Sarah added.
"I was going in and out of consciousness and they told me to go to the toilet as I would pass the placenta there. Nobody stayed in there with me, it was just me and my partner. He was the one left to take me to the toilet and to pick me when I was passing out.
"I remember ringing my mum at one point and just begging her to ring an ambulance or something, as nothing was being done, we weren't being listened to, and I was in absolute agony."
Three months on, Sarah said the hospital have invited her back for a review to discuss what happened.
However, she continues to receive letters inviting her to antenatal appointments despite the stillbirth of her son.
She said: "I should be 30 weeks pregnant now and it's a kick in the teeth when you continue to get stuff like that through. You would expect them to update their systems.
"The way we were treated and spoken to, it was all just completely mishandled, they were ill-equipped.
"If you're not equipped to have people losing their babies in that hospital, then send them somewhere else where they are equipped. I would never ever go back to that hospital again."
A spokesperson for the Southern Trust said: “We extend our sincerest sympathies to this woman and her family.
"This is not the experience we would want for any of our patients during such a difficult time and we apologise for any distress caused.
"Our maternity team have contacted this patient directly to discuss her concerns and offer support. ”
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