Midwife sliced off baby's fingertip

The tip of a baby's little finger was sliced off by a midwife cutting the umbilical cord at a West Midland maternity unit.

Little Ishika Kainth was rushed from the delivery room at New Cross Hospital, Wolverhampton, to an operating theatre 15 miles away where surgeons re-attached the damaged digit to the baby's left hand.

Horrified mother Jasvir Kainth had been through a four-hour labour when the accident happened on Friday, May 14.

The 28-year-old, who has no other children, said at her home in Fordhouses, Wolverhampton: "The midwife was using really sharp scissors to cut the cord. When she cut the cord she cut through the finger as well, but did not even notice at first. My husband Parminder told her she had cut the finger off and she replied: 'No I have not.' So I had to say to her:

'Look at all the blood.'

"We were hysterical. There was blood everywhere. It has caused my husband and I so much stress. You just do not expect these things to happen.

"Giving birth is supposed to be one of the most memorable experiences in your life. This was certainly different, but not in a good way."

Baby Ishika, who now faces being heavily bandaged for the first few weeks of her life, had to be separated from her mother just minutes after being born to allow the fingertip to be stitched back on again at Birmingham Childrens Hospital.

Parminder, aged 36, who was present during labour, claimed: "There was only one midwife there for most of the birth. After she cut the finger off she left the room to get help.

"Doing that with a newborn baby who is losing blood all over the place was unbelievable.We were told that the midwife had 22 years of experience and so we will never understand how it happened."

New Cross Hospital chief executive David Loughton said: "We can confirm here has been an incident. It is being investigated by an external investigator and the findings will be shared with the trust board and the family."