Stevie Cullivan was just two days old when he died on April 30, 2015.
He had been born at the Midland Regional Hospital in Mullingar but was later transferred to the Rotunda in Dublin.
Today, an inquest into his death ruled that he died as a result of medical misadventure.
Medical evidence ascertained that Stevie suffered from a lack of oxygen to the brain shortly before delivery, reports RTÉ. The birth was not difficult, but the baby was born limp and unresponsive and he required resuscitation.
The hearing had previously been told by Stevie’s mother, Sandra, that she was left alone in a private room for 90 minutes; she was not monitored by medical staff during this time.
Dublin District Coroners Court has returned a verdict of medical misadventure regarding the death of baby Stevie Cullivan https://t.co/xSnefJJcl1 pic.twitter.com/XVJyhwhPSt
— RTÉ News (@rtenews) November 15, 2017
“Coroner Dr Myra Cullinane said there had been a lack of clarity regarding who was responsible for observing and monitoring baby Stevie’s mother,” RTÉ also reports.
She was aged 36 at the time of the birth.
Prior to today’s verdict, the HSE had apologised to Sandra Cullivan. Lawyers for the HSE reiterated that apology again today.
Sandra’s husband, Stephen, had died from a heart attack five months before their baby was born and Stevie is named in his father’s memory.
In October, Mrs Cullivan had said she was “devastated” by the deaths.
