'Put your dead baby in the fridge': What nurse told mother who suffered miscarriage

'Traumatised': Sophie Hill, with her seven-month-old daughter Marnie-Faye, stored the foetus in a Tupperware box

She had just endured the trauma of a miscarriage.

But when Sophie Hill phoned her hospital with her dead child next to her, she was simply told to put it in the fridge for two days until her scheduled appointment.

Confused and in shock, Miss Hill followed the nurse's instructions and stored the foetus in a Tupperware box in her fridge so it could be kept cool for testing.

Last night, as hospital bosses investigated, Miss Hill said she had been 'betrayed by the NHS' and her father called for the nurse who gave the advice to be suspended.

Miss Hill, 21, was overjoyed when she become pregnant for a second time with boyfriend Jamie George, 29, and the pair had been planning for the arrival of what they hoped would be a second daughter.

The 12-week scan showed the baby was growing well but subsequent tests revealed problems.

She was told in February, when she was four months pregnant, that the baby had died.

Weeks later, she miscarried.

Miss Hill, from Crawley, West Sussex, said: 'I was woken up at three in the morning with horrific pains in my stomach.

'I was in agony and went to the toilet and that's when it happened. I thought I should keep it and next morning I spoke to the hospital to find out what I should do.'

She phoned the early pregnancy unit at East Surrey Hospital in Redhill and spoke to a nurse.

'I said to the woman what had happened and asked what I should do,' she said.

'I don't think she really understood what I was saying or believed me. She replied that I was not due back in for my next appointment for another two days so I would have to wait until then because they were unable to see me.

'She said I had to keep the child cold for testing reasons and I should keep it in the fridge until my appointment.

Let down: East Surrey Hospital where Miss Hill sought help is managed by the Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust

'At no point did she say I should go to hospital. I was really upset, my head was a mess and I did what she said. When you call up a pregnancy unit at a hospital you expect them to give you good advice so I took it as gospel.

'I put it in a Tupperware box and sealed it up and wrapped it in a plastic bag because I could see the arms and legs and some of the head and put it in the fridge towards the back.

'It was horrible. Every time I went to the fridge I had to look at it.'

Miss Hill took the child to her appointment two days later.

Later on, her health visitor said the nurse's guidance was entirely wrong and she should have sought immediate medical attention.

She added that in 25 years of midwifery she had never seen anything like it.

Miss Hill, whose daughter Marnie-Faye is seven months old, said: 'I'm furious at how I've been treated and I can't understand why on earth the nurse told me what she did.

'I'm haunted by what happened to me and shudder every time I look at my little girl because it reminds me.

'I want her to have a sister one day but I will wait because I'm so traumatised and let down by the hospital.'

Miss Hill's father Paul, 45, a cargo handler with British Airways, last night attacked the hospital for their 'neglect' of his daughter.

He said: 'I'm disgusted with the way they treated her and that nurse should at least be suspended.

'She had no support, no counselling and has had no apology.'

It is understood the nurse who advised Miss Hill is on holiday and has not been disciplined.

A Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust spokesman, said: 'We acknowledge and
appreciate that Sophie Hill has been through a very difficult time and would
like to express our sympathy for her loss.

'Our Early Pregnancy Unit provides care to women during the early stages of their pregnancies and we strive to offer responsive, supportive and sensitive care to a high standard.

All our nurses are specifically trained to offer advice and support to women at
varying stages of pregnancy.

'Our early Pregnancy Unit advice is that in exceptional circumstances in
order to find out why a woman has miscarried the foetus will need to be
examined at the hospital. The woman will be advised to come to the hospital
immediately. If she is unable to come to the hospital, she will need to keep
the foetus preserved for it to be suitable for examination.

'We are unable to discuss the individual circumstances of this case, but
would welcome Sophie contacting the hospital to arrange a meeting with her
and offer our support.'

The spokesman added the Trust hadn't received a formal complaint from Miss Hill and if they received one they would have a full internal investigation.

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