AN EXPERIENCED midwife accused of failings that led to the death of newborn baby Joshua Titcombe has been cleared of any wrongdoing.

Gretta Dixon was alleged to have neglected to refer Hoa Titcombe to a medical practitioner for an assessment when she was informed she was unwell on Sunday October 26 2008.

Baby Joshua was born on the following Monday at Furness General Hospital in Barrow and died nine days later.

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Mrs Titcombe and her husband James, from Dalton, claim they repeatedly told hospital staff she was feeling unwell.

The expectant mother was apparently concerned about catching an infection from her young daughter who had been sent home from nursery after falling ill.

The allegation against Miss Dixon was found not proved at a Nursing and Midwifery Council hearing in London.

Panel chairman Richard Davies said all the witnesses had 'sought to recall events some seven and a half years ago as well as they could' but that there were 'inconsistencies' in some of the accounts.

"The only cogent piece of evidence could be found in the patient's notes... which were recorded contemporaneously," he added.

"They were written before any sort of issues came to light. The panel found that these notes were accurate and reliable."

He continued: "There was no documentary evidence that any of those midwives (who saw Mrs Titcombe) had been informed that the patient was unwell."

Miss Dixon, who qualified as a midwife in 1998, assessed Mrs Titcombe the day before she gave birth.

She said she had 'no recollection' of her saying she was unwell and is 'certain' she would have recorded it in the patient notes.

She said she performed an antenatal assessment, took a urine sample and checked the results of a previous urine test which showed no signs of any infection.

The only issue Mrs Titcombe reported was a 'mild headache' and feeling tired, Miss Dixon added.

Mr Titcombe, a national adviser on patient safety at the Care Quality Commission, successfully argued for an inquest to take place into the death of his son, which heard midwives repeatedly missed chances to spot and treat a serious infection which led to the baby's death.

The NMC ruled at a previous hearing that there was no case for Miss Dixon's colleague Catherine McCullough to answer.

Miss Dixon did not make any comment to the press after the conclusion of the hearing.