Recipient

Recipient name withheld

First report 2 Mar 2020•Latest report 2 Mar 2020

Recipient record

Reports, concerns and published responses

This page brings together reports naming this recipient and response statements clearly connected to concerns raised in those reports.

Reports: 1
Published responses: 0%
Concerns addressed: 0
Stated actions: 0

Reports over time

Reports naming this recipient by issue year.

Evidence profile

Report topics

Share of this recipient’s reports compared with all other recipients.

0%published responses found

0stated actions described

Topic comparisons are not available in the current evidence snapshot.

Concerns and recipient responses

Statements from Recipient name withheld linked to the concerns in each report. Select any concern, action or position to view the source wording.

2 Mar2020
North East Kent
Concerns raised20
1. Lack of cross-site clinical working opportunities
2. Failure to notify the Coroner of a child death
3. Uncertain auditing and logging of neonatal resuscitation pro forma completion
1. Unclear guidance for obtaining anaesthetic help in paediatric emergencies
2. Failure to retain placentae for examination after severe foetal distress
3. Lack of clear requirements for consultant assessment of locum competence before overnight responsibility
4. Failure to produce timely and sufficiently detailed statements after deaths
5. Failure to assess and supervise locum clinicians
6. Lack of clarity about when to call a consultant at night
7. Failure to record consultant telephone advice
8. Failure to record feedback and audit locum recruitment
9. Insufficient consultant availability for night-time emergencies
10. Lack of staff knowledge of applicable clinical guidelines and policies
11. Failure to share important independent safety reports with staff
12. Lack of paediatric team knowledge of neonatal collapse guidelines
13. Lack of clarity about prompt action in obstetric emergencies
14. Substandard obstetric record keeping
15. Inaccurate and incomplete child death notification forms
16. Inadequate neonatal resuscitation training
17. Inaccurate MBRRACE maternal and neonatal death reporting
Responses linked to these concerns
Each statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.

No linked response statements
No action or position from this recipient is clearly linked to the concerns in this report.
AI-generated summary

HARRY RICHFORD · Prevention of Future Deaths report

This summary was generated using AI from the published report. Please read the original report for the complete account.

Report summary

Harry Richford was born at QEQM on 2 November 2017 and died at William Harvey Hospital on 9 November 2017 after being transferred there. The report describes delays in delivery, shortcomings in the caesarean delivery and neonatal resuscitation, and subsequent hypoxia and brain injury. Substantive concerns included locum recruitment, assessment and supervision; clarity about escalation to consultants; neonatal resuscitation training; record keeping and adherence to guidelines; and inaccurate death notifications and reporting.

Read the report on judiciary.uk
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Lack of cross-site clinical working opportunities
Wider context from the report
“Concern 8 Prior to Harry's death both ████████████████, a senior member of staff who had the care of Harry at the William Harvey Hospital, accepted that there were no opportunities for cross site working between QEQM and the William Harvey Hospital. Currently two out of eight middle grade doctors have had the opportunity to spend time at the William Harvey, which has a much higher specification neo natal unit. ████████ described the lack of opportunities before Harry's death as ‘at best, very surprising'. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Failure to notify the Coroner of a child death
Wider context from the report
“Concern 17 The child death notification form was incorrectly completed in that Harry's death was recorded as 'expected'. No notification was made to the Coroner. No details were filled in on the notification form giving any detail of the problems leading to Harry's death. As a result, the Child Death Overview Panel would have been unaware of the problems encountered and could not have shared learning to prevent other such deaths occurring. I make no recommendation in respect of the lack of notification to the Coroner as I am aware that the Senior Coroner has already dealt with this. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Uncertain auditing and logging of neonatal resuscitation pro forma completion
Wider context from the report
“Concern 15 The East Kent Trust should consider a review as to the use or otherwise of a resuscitation pro forma. A pro forma has since Harry's death been adopted by the East Kent Trust which, on the evidence of ████████, has improved the oversight of neo natal training and governance. It is not clear whether that pro forma is being audited or logged, or what actions are being done to ensure its completion and preservation. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Unclear guidance for obtaining anaesthetic help in paediatric emergencies
Wider context from the report
“Concern 9 The resuscitation of Harry was eventually carried out by ████████, the anaesthetist looking after ████████. His evidence was that leaving his own patient to help the paediatric team was an unusual action to take in the UK although he had often performed such actions in Nepal. Doctors at QEQM indicated that there was an informal policy that if a middle grade paediatrician found themselves in an emergency, they could seek help from their anaesthetic colleagues. It was unclear whether the anaesthetists were aware of this informal policy. This informal policy should be clarified, and guidance given because there is a risk, that in an emergency, it will be overlooked. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Failure to retain placentae for examination after severe foetal distress
Wider context from the report
“Concern 12 The placenta of Harry was not retained. Examination of the placenta will in some circumstances assist in cases of severe foetal distress. The Royal College of Pathologists states that it is 'essential' for the placenta to be sent for examination in cases of severe foetal distress requiring admission to a neo natal unit. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Lack of clear requirements for consultant assessment of locum competence before overnight responsibility
Wider context from the report
“Concern 2 The current policy of the East Kent Trust states that it is the responsibility of the healthcare professional who will be supervising the locum to assure themselves of his/her competence. This did not happen in this case. There is at present no requirement for a locum to be assessed on a day shift by a consultant before being left in charge overnight. There is no clear direction that it is the responsibility of the assessing consultant to satisfy themselves of the locum's experience and capability. One specialist from outside the East Kent Trust, ████████, also stated that it would assist the assessing consultants to be able to see not only the locum's CV but also their references and any training records available. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Failure to produce timely and sufficiently detailed statements after deaths
Wider context from the report
“Concern 16 In order to try to prevent future deaths it is important that there are clear records and statements made when a death occurs so that lessons can be learnt. In this instance many of the statements were very scanty in their content and some were made a long time after the event. In some instances, staff had to make statements from memory without the advantage of seeing the medical notes. Contemporaneous (or as near as possible) notes are also very much in the interests of the staff involved so that they can give clear accounts of their actions and reasons for them if required to do so at a later date. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Failure to assess and supervise locum clinicians
Wider context from the report
“Concern 1 ████████ was recruited as a locum registrar by the Hospital Trust without there appearing to have been any assessment of his skills and abilities or any supervision of him at the hospital. This was not an emergency appointment after, for example, a doctor calling in sick at the last minute. ████████ gave evidence that the recruitment, assessment and supervision of locums is a national problem and that there is a need for a review on a national level. This raises concerns that there may be a risk to other lives both at this trust and at other trusts in the future. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Lack of clarity about when to call a consultant at night
Wider context from the report
“Concern 5 There appeared to be from the evidence given at the inquest substantial confusion amongst staff as to when a consultant should be called at night. The East Kent Trust now has some 70 hours a week consultant attendance on the wards. That leaves 14 hours a day when there is no consultant present. Staff, whether doctors, nurses or midwives should know the circumstances in which consultant help should be sought and should not feel inhibited from making their views known. If staff are unaware or unsure of when the consultant should be called that potentially poses a continuing risk to life. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Failure to record consultant telephone advice
Wider context from the report
“Concern 14 There are no current records kept by consultants who are telephoned at home for advice. In this case there was a dispute about the number of calls made to ████████ and as to the content of these calls. The advice given and the actions taken as a result are important for the preservation of life. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Failure to record feedback and audit locum recruitment
Wider context from the report
“Concern 3 ████████ had worked two night time shifts at the QEQM before the night of Harry's birth. The extent to which there was any feedback from the consultants on call those two nights to ████████ is unclear. She, erroneously, believed the East Kent Trust had employed ████████. There is no record of any written feedback. From the evidence of the medical director of the East Kent Trust it appears that the current locum recruitment policy is not being checked or audited. There is a potential for further risks to life arising from these shortfalls. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Insufficient consultant availability for night-time emergencies
Wider context from the report
“Concern 6 The current contracts at the East Kent Trust permit consultants to live up to 30 minutes travel time from the hospital. This poses considerable problems and risks for night time emergencies. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Lack of staff knowledge of applicable clinical guidelines and policies
Wider context from the report
“Concern 10 There appeared to be considerable confusion among members of staff as to which, if any, guidelines and policies affected them. While two senior members of staff, ████████████████ (consultant), said that the East Kent Trust has systems in place to ensure knowledge of and compliance with Trust policies neither of them was able to say whether this was effective. Significant issues remain as to the knowledge of staff as to which guidelines govern their behaviour (this was also a finding of the Health and Safety Investigation Board in 2019). Such confusion or lack of knowledge increases the risk of future deaths. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Failure to share important independent safety reports with staff
Wider context from the report
“Concern 19 Important independent reports do not appear to have been shared within the East Kent Trust's staff, for instance the HSIB report into Harry's death appeared during the inquest to be unknown to a number of the staff. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Lack of paediatric team knowledge of neonatal collapse guidelines
Wider context from the report
“Concern 11 There was a lack of knowledge within the paediatric team of guidelines issued by the Department of Women's Health. The evidence from the East Kent Trust doctors was that the guidelines issued by the department directed to 'all maternity and neonatal staff who may be involved with the immediate care and support of a collapsed neonate' would not have been known to the paediatric team at the relevant time. Even senior clinicians, such as ████████, were not aware of the relevant guidelines. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Lack of clarity about prompt action in obstetric emergencies
Wider context from the report
“Concern 4 There is a risk to the life of both mothers and babies if there is a lack of clarity as to the processes or the need to take prompt action where it is necessitated in the event of an obstetric concern or emergency developing. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Substandard obstetric record keeping
Wider context from the report
“Concern 13 The standard of record keeping on the obstetric unit was substantially sub-standard. The quality of the note taking and records is of considerable importance to new staff taking over responsibility for mother and baby. Without there being clear accurate records there is a risk of further mistakes being made leading, at the worst, to the risk of death. An example of this in Harry's case is that the record of the syntocinon prescribed to ████████ over a long period of time is inconsistent with the evidence of the midwives and the registrar who gave it to her. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Inaccurate and incomplete child death notification forms
Wider context from the report
“Concern 17 The child death notification form was incorrectly completed in that Harry's death was recorded as 'expected'. No notification was made to the Coroner. No details were filled in on the notification form giving any detail of the problems leading to Harry's death. As a result, the Child Death Overview Panel would have been unaware of the problems encountered and could not have shared learning to prevent other such deaths occurring. I make no recommendation in respect of the lack of notification to the Coroner as I am aware that the Senior Coroner has already dealt with this. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Inadequate neonatal resuscitation training
Wider context from the report
“Concern 7 The evidence of ████████ raised substantial concerns about the quality of training and learning in respect of neonatal resuscitation at the East Kent Trust. His evidence was that it would be desirable for middle grade doctors to attend the ARNI course (the advanced resuscitation of the new born infant). He also recommended that there should be simulated drills in neo natal resuscitation. ”
Open source report
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Recipient name withheld; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Inaccurate MBRRACE maternal and neonatal death reporting
Wider context from the report
“Concern 18 The MBRRACE form in respect of Harry Richford was inaccurate in a number of important areas. The form is important to provide robust national data to support the delivery of safe, high quality maternal and new born care as well as identifying errors and faults, if any, where there has been a maternal or infant death so that future deaths can be avoided. ”
Open source report

Information checked against published PFD reports and official responses · Data reviewed 7 Sep 2026 · About data quality and limitations

Data last updated 7 September 2026

Reports, concerns and published responses

Reports over time

Concerns raised20

Lack of cross-site clinical working opportunities

Failure to notify the Coroner of a child death

Uncertain auditing and logging of neonatal resuscitation pro forma completion

Unclear guidance for obtaining anaesthetic help in paediatric emergencies

Failure to retain placentae for examination after severe foetal distress

Lack of clear requirements for consultant assessment of locum competence before overnight responsibility

Failure to produce timely and sufficiently detailed statements after deaths

Failure to assess and supervise locum clinicians

Lack of clarity about when to call a consultant at night

Failure to record consultant telephone advice

Failure to record feedback and audit locum recruitment

Insufficient consultant availability for night-time emergencies

Lack of staff knowledge of applicable clinical guidelines and policies

Failure to share important independent safety reports with staff

Lack of paediatric team knowledge of neonatal collapse guidelines

Lack of clarity about prompt action in obstetric emergencies

Substandard obstetric record keeping

Inaccurate and incomplete child death notification forms

Inadequate neonatal resuscitation training

Inaccurate MBRRACE maternal and neonatal death reporting