A pregnant mom in England awoke on the morning of her scheduled cesarean section on June 7, 2023, ready for the most exciting day of her life, but instead, she was faced with tragedy. Rebecca Moss went to wake up her partner, Thomas Gibson, so the pair could head to the hospital, but Gibson wasn’t responding.
Moss realized it was more than a deep sleep; he wasn’t breathing. According to the BBC, a court hearing June 4, 2024, revealed Gibson had been ill, in the weeks leading up to his death, but doctors at Wythenshawe Hospital’s Accident and Emergency Department allegedly misdiagnosed his illness. Lawyers for his family say medical malpractice led to his death, and the hospital reportedly admitted that to his family.
More From CafeMom: As I Was About To Give Birth, to a ‘Terminal’ Baby, My Seemingly Healthy Husband Died
Gibson and Moss were thrilled they were about to meet their daughter, Harper.
Moss testified in court and tearfully recalled the fateful June morning, SkyNews reported. It was around 5:15 a.m., and Gibson was lying on the couch in his normal sleeping position. She said she told Gibson to “wake up; it’s the baby day.”
Much to her shock, however, her partner was “cold and stiff” when she touched him.
Moss called for help.
The 39-week pregnant mom-to-be called for help and followed a dispatcher’s instructions.
“I called 999 immediately. They asked me to pull Tom on to the floor and perform chest compressions. I started chest compressions until the ambulance arrived,” she explained.
She recalled the “overwhelming” task of trying to revive her partner while pregnant and ready to give birth. An ambulance arrived at her home a short time later, and Gibson was pronounced dead. She gave birth to Harper a few hours later.
Gibson was reportedly ill prior to his death.
According to his partner, Gibson was a physically fit man who’d been experiencing stomach pain and diarrhea in the weeks leading up to his death, SkyNews reported. Gibson visited Wythenshawe Hospital on May 27, just 11 days before his death, to inquire about his symptoms.
While Gibson was there, doctors performed an electrocardiogram, per the BBC. A junior doctor allegedly found signs of a potential blockage and looked to a senior doctor, Dr. Thomas Bull, to review the results, Bull said in court.
Bull allegedly misread the EKG.
Per the inquest, Bull said when he read the test results, he didn’t think they were “significant” without additional symptoms. Gibson was discharged and told to return to the hospital if his stomach symptoms didn’t improve.
A later review of the EKG reportedly showed a “complete heart block,” which can lead to sudden cardiac death.
The hospital reportedly took liability for the death.
“I can see now, in retrospect and in hindsight, there is abnormalities over and above those I could see present,” Bull said during the inquest, per the BBC.
The news outlet reported that attorneys for Gibson’s family claim Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust admitted the hospital gave the father-to-be negligent care.
His daughter’s life will not be the same without her dad. According to the Independent, Moss grieved the loss during the inquest.
“He won’t ever be there on Christmas morning, and he won’t be there on Father’s Day. Harper will instead visit her dad’s grave when she’s old enough to understand,” she said. “We say good night to his picture every night before bed and she has a quilt which has been made from his favorite jumpers.”
