The NHS has agreed to pay £10.8m in compensation after a hospital’s failure to monitor a woman during labour led to her daughter suffering catastrophic injuries when she was born.

The Claimant’s mother, Kate Evans, was in established labour when she was admitted to Lincoln County hospital at 7pm on 1 March 2001. Although her baby’s heart was monitored after her arrival, the subsequent monitoring was found to have been inadequate, and at 10pm she was found to have an abnormal heart rate and to be in distress. After that discovery there was a delay in delivering her. She was transferred to the neonatal unit where resuscitation procedures were carried out and she suffered a seizure.

The issues at birth meant Milly Evans (now 11) had cerebral palsy and is totally dependent on others. Milly uses a wheelchair and is unable to speak, although her intellect has remained fairly well intact and she communicates through sophisticated eye-gaze equipment.

Milly’s parents, acting on her behalf as her litigation friends, claimed that if hospital staff had monitored her heart rate properly the midwife could have identified sooner that she was in distress, she would have been delivered quickly and accordingly would not have suffered such severe injuries.  

The United Lincolnshire Hospital NHS Trust admitted liability in March 2010 but contested the amount of damages, until both sides recently reached an agreement.  

The settlement, believed to be one of the largest in a case of medical negligence, included a lump sum of £5.9m and periodical payments for care, that will rise to £204,000 a year. It is understood that the family will use the money to move into a specially-adapted home which has hoists and a hydrotherapy pool. The settlement also covers the cost of past and future full-time care for Milly as well as treatment, education, special equipment, transport and loss of future earnings.