Baby dies of acute pneumonia six hours after discharge from hospital

Detailed summary

A baby who died at home the day after he was born would likely have survived if he had still been in hospital, a coroner's report says.

A baby who died at home the day after he was born would likely have survived if he had still been in hospital, a coroner's report says.

The report calls for sweeping change to fix deep, engrained shortages and a lack of funding across the country's maternity service.

Baby Remedy and his mother, who is described as vulnerable, were discharged from hospital six hours after he was born.

He was 32 hours old when he rapidly deteriorated and died from acute pneumonia in June 2024.

An expert said the early discharge made the first 24 hours of his life unnecessarily complicated and his mother had limited resources to call on when his health suddenly changed.

Coroner Alison Mills said opportunities to support the mother through pregnancy were lost and the case highlighted the system-wide lack of staff and beds in the country's maternity service, particularly for those focused on Māori whānau.

Remedy's mother, whose name is suppressed, was 19 when he was born and had a seemingly uncomplicated birth at Waikato Hospital.

It was not uncommon for low-risk babies to be discharged the same day but Remedy's mother had wanted to stay the night.

She told Coroner Mills that staff said there were not enough beds so she left.

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