My baby died in my arms

A CORK woman who spent more than an hour watching her six-day-old baby die in her arms has called on the Government to legislate for cases of fatal foetal abnormality.

Annie Roche, originally from Mitchelstown and now living in Glanworth, gave birth to baby Aishling in Cork in 2010.

Within the first 24 hours of Aishling’s life, it was clear there was something wrong.

Ciaran Roche and Annie Roche with their newborn daughter Aishling.

“She went blue and when they checked her blood oxygen levels they were going down to a dangerously low levelWhen they listened to her chest they realised it sounded like there was a problem with her heart,” said Annie.

After a whirlwind of tests and tubes and wires, the doctors revealed baby Aishling had a number of complex heart diseases and recommended she be brought to Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital in Crumlin for further treatment.

“Within 10 minutes of being in the intensive care unit a nurse said to us would you like to have her christened. We just stood there with our mouths open,” explained Annie.

Doctors then advised the mother to take ‘as many photos as possible’ with the baby.

Cork mother Annie Roche, from Mitchelstown, with her newborn daughter Aishling.

Annie said: “For four of her six days of life, she suffered. We watched her discomfort, her face distorted in distress, looking like she was crying but no noise because of the tubes,” saidAnnie. “We hoped and prayed and watched her medical team try to find a way to save her. Once they knew the extent of her problems they made it clear she could not survive… We made the decision to withdraw her care. We could not justify watching her suffer.”

“That evening I sat and held her as they pulled out everything that was keeping her alive. I sang to her, you are my sunshine I hugged her to my chest, finally free of tubes. She went unconscious. It took her one hour and 15 minutes to die in my arms. The moment I knew she was gone my overwhelming feeling was relief. I had been horrified at the idea of it taking days for her to die… Watching her die was the most traumatic event of my life.”

Annie said she doesn’t want anyone else to have to go through what she and her family went through.

Had she known about her child’s fatal foetal abnormality during pregnancy, she said she could not have brought herself to travel to the UK for an abortion as she could not go through something like that so far away from her family and friends.

and support network.

“But I would not have wanted to bring a baby into the world to go through what I witnessed. Families should have the choice to be induced in Irish hospitals, not UK ones,” she said.

“People who choose to terminate their pregnancy do so for the same reason that I chose to withdraw Aishling’s care. Once the reality that your baby can’t be saved sets in, your priority becomes wanting to protect them from suffering.”

The post My baby died in my arms appeared first on Evening Echo.