A grieving Sudbury couple have spoken of their 'devastating' loss after their baby died at four days old.

Lori Clark, 31, was found to have high blood pressure at 38 weeks into her first pregnancy at West Suffolk Hospital.

The day after a membrane sweep was performed at 41 weeks, she began to rapidly lose blood and was taken to hospital by ambulance.

Following her admission to the labour ward of West Suffolk Hospital, a cardiotocograph was used but the baby's heart rate couldn't be heard.

After this point, a Doppler was performed and, while the heart rate was found, it was audibly low.

The decision was made to carry out a Caesarean section and baby Roman was born on March 25, 2021.

As he was pale, floppy and not crying, Roman required resuscitation and was intubated at one-and-a-half minutes old.

He was found to have suffered a lack of oxygen and was referred to the neonatal unit for cooling therapy.

After his condition deteriorated over the next four days, Lori and her husband James made the difficult decision to remove his breathing tube.

Lori said: "Roman needed help as soon as he was born. However nothing prepared us for being told there was nothing more that could be done for him.

"Holding Roman together, whilst he took his last breath, was heart-breaking and we will never forget the distress and despair we felt that day."

Roman died on March 29, 2021 at four-days-old.

His death certificate stated the cause of death to be placental abruption, multi-organ failure and severe brain damage.

"Leaving the hospital without our baby boy was devastating," said Lori.

"We had so many future plans which will never happen."

Following their son's death, the couple instructed medical negligence lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate their care under the West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust and East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust.

Their lawyer, Alice Webster, said: "The past year has been incredibly tough for Lori and James. What should have been the happiest time of their lives turned out to be the worst.

"Sadly, nothing will ever make up for what they've been through but we're now investigating their concerns. If during the course of our investigation, any issues are identified, it's vital that lessons are learned to improve maternity safety."

Sue Wilkinson, executive chief nurse at the West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We once again offer our heartfelt apologies and deepest sympathies to Roman’s parents. We cannot imagine how difficult the past year must have been for them, and their family.

“Every one of our patients deserves safe, high-quality care. This sits at the heart of everything we do. When tragic situations like these happen, we owe it to everyone affected to take action to make sure lessons are learnt, and improvements are made.

“The Trust reviewed the incident to ensure it identified any learning, and this was subsequently investigated by the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch. We have taken on board their recommendations and are taking action to improve the quality of our care.”