An inquest heard that the NHS failed to adequately warn a mother who died during childbirth about the hazards of natural delivery.

Lucy Howell, 32, died in March 2021 at Royal Hampshire County Hospital after problems with the delivery of her second child, Pippa.

The mother-of-two had previously had her eldest daughter Rosie delivered through caesarean section, which required specific surgery to fix.

Her family, however, has alleged that Ms Howell was given ‘conflicting’ information regarding the hazards of a natural birth and is demanding answers from Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

The coroner who is examining Ms Howell’s death has also criticised the trust, saying it has failed to present a “candid” reason for her death.

A complete inquiry is expected to determine whether she would have lived if she had chosen a different form of birth, such as a C-section.

The hearing took place the same week as a damning maternity study revealed that more than 200 newborns and nine mothers died as a result of Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust shortcomings.

According to the Ockenden study, women were blamed for their kids’ deaths, baby fatalities were frequently not probed, and mourning parents were not listened to.

Mrs. Howell, of Bishop’s Waltham, Hants, went into labour in March 2021 and was taken to the Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester to be induced, according to the pre-inquest study.

Ms Howell’s uterus burst during birth, and while her daughter lived after being delivered in her stomach, she died on March 12.

According to the post-mortem report, her death was caused by a uterine rupture and amniotic fluid embolism.

Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust then initiated an inquiry.

Mrs. Howell was told at the hearing that after the birth of her first baby in 2017, she needed surgery to address scars.

Her family believes this may have rendered her vulnerable to a natural birth and has questioned the counsel she was given before to Pippa’s birth.

It is contested whether Mrs Howell was given enough information to make an educated decision about whether she should have given birth normally after having a C-section earlier, according to Winchester Coroner’s Court.

The family’s lawyer, Vanessa Cashman, told the pre-inquest review: ‘She was given inconsistent counsel – if it can be called that.’

Area Coroner Rosamund Rhodes-Kemp told the hearing that the Trust’s comments so far did not give a complete account of what transpired.

‘For the family, the Trust must demonstrate that they have learned from what happened,’ Mrs Rhodes-Kemp added.

‘However, kids can only benefit from it if there is an open and honest explanation of what happened.’ At the time, the statements I’ve seen do not reflect this.

‘The remarks do not represent learning or a complete comprehension of what occurred.’

Mrs Rhodes-Kemp stated that she now has concerns regarding Mrs Howell’s prenatal care, labour, and whether Mrs Howell was provided with enough information to make an educated decision.

‘The counsel offered to women who have had a caesarean section is not very helpful,’ she says. ‘This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. There are concerns with labour management.

‘The beginning point is whether or whether there was a labour and who said what to whom.’ The second consideration is whether the labour was handled adequately in light of the

‘I don’t think anyone could have done anything regarding resuscitation. But I’m keen to understand how we got to this point, whether it could have been avoided.

‘I think there are issues regarding the labour and whether this could all have been avoided had she not had a vaginal birth.’