Doctors perform emergency C-section on dying woman who wasn't pregnant
Doctors carried out an emergency C-section on a woman who was dying following a horrific car crash – before discovering she was not pregnant.
Adele Barbour was struck when she pulled out in front of another car in Nettleham, Lincolnshire in the UK, on January 17 last year.
Emergency crews who arrived at the scene noticed Ms Barbour had a protruding stomach and thought she was pregnant, according to Lincolnshire Live.
They did not realise the enlarged stomach was a result of major surgery to treat her spina bifida in 1975.
Ms Barbour, who was also diagnosed with chronic leukaemia in 2016, was rushed to hospital where doctors carried out the procedure.
She later died after a cardiac arrest at Lincoln County Hospital.
An inquest into Ms Barbour’s death at Lincoln Cathedral Centre heard Coroner Marianne Johnson raise questions regarding the actions of the emergency workers.
Witness Nicola Ware, an off-duty paramedic who works at East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS), recalled that Ms Barbour was complaining of back pain but made no mention of being pregnant.
Paramedics from the private medical group, Elite EMS, and Lincolnshire Integrated Voluntary Emergency Service (LIVES) soon arrived at the scene to help.
The inquest heard the decision to take Ms Barbour to Lincoln County Hospital was down to her unstable state and repeat cardiac arrests, unavailability of the air ambulance, and the possibility that she may have been pregnant.
Emma Haskey, a clinical support manager at East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS), told the inquest in a pre-alert to the hospital she informed them there was a female patient after a road traffic collision with a query to whether she was eight months pregnant.
She said she would update them with more information when she could.
“Later I was updated by the Emergency Operations Centre who told me that a C-section was carried out and the patient was found not to be pregnant,” she said.
Sam Smith, also from EMAS, added to the inquest: “In my opinion from the evidence I don’t think that the crew could have done any more than they did.”
“I would not recommend a different course of action,” he said.
Ms Barbour’s sister, Sarah-Jane Spence said that doctors did not initially tell the family about the C-section, despite two chances to do so.
“United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust have a duty of candour to be open and honest but they were not and that caused us additional heartache,” she said.
“I truly believe that the interests of everyone involved in her care was to save her life.
“But knowing the truth would have helped us with this process.”
The inquest continues.
