Her baby was decapitated during childbirth

WHEN Laura Gallazzi felt her waters break at only 25 weeks into her pregnancy, the first-time mum was terrified her baby son was about to be born hugely premature.

But what was to happen in hospital was far more horrific than she could have imagined — as the doctor battling to deliver her child accidentally decapitated him.

The baby had been stuck in the breech position and as the medic tugged at his legs to try and get him out — instead of performing a C-section — his head broke off in Laura’s womb.

Two other doctors did then carry out a C-section — but only to recover the baby’s head.

Speaking exclusively for the first time about the horror that shocked the nation, Laura now lays the blame squarely at the door of Dr Vaishnavy Laxman — although she has since been cleared to continue practising.

Traumatised Laura, 34, says: “She butchered my son. How could this happen in this day and age?”

She also believes she was duped into initially forgiving Dr Laxman because she did not explain how the baby had died.

Recalling her nightmare at Dundee’s Ninewells Hospital, she tells how she woke afterward in a room for mothers who have suffered loss in pregnancy, with her tearful sister Louise by her side.

Dr Laxman came in and told her the news her baby had died. Yet devastated Laura assumed this was simply because he was 25 weeks premature.

She says: “Dr Laxman sat to the edge of my bed. She told me Steven hadn’t made it. I told her, ‘Don’t worry, these things happen.’ I thought it was because I was only 25 weeks. I didn’t know something untoward had happened. I even held her hand. I told her I forgave her.”

But nothing was to prepare her for the chilling truth, told to her by another doctor later in the day, which would then take here trauma to a whole new level.

Laura says: “My son was dead and then they told me he had been decapitated. I was screaming, My poor baby.

“Why didn’t they give me the C-section in the first place? Instead of having to carry it out to retrieve my son’s head?

“If I didn’t have tubes and needles in me, attaching me to a machine, I don’t know what I would’ve done.

“I was inconsolable. I thought they were going to just bring in a body. I didn’t want to be left with that memory.”

Only three babies in the world are known to have succumbed to such a sickening fate and Laura says: It’s like something from medieval times. I never imagined this would be my experience of birth.”

It had taken Laura a year of trying to fall pregnant with partner Steven McCusker, now 30, and they couldn’t wait to be parents.

She says: “It was just after my 30th birthday. We had been together a while and just decided to see if it would happen.

“I was over the moon when I found out at 20 weeks that I was expecting a son.

“We had everything ready — a pram, baby monitors, sterilising unit and so on. We had little outfits and everything.”

Her pregnancy was plain-sailing, save for her being diagnosed with Rhesus disease — a condition where antibodies in a pregnant woman’s blood destroy her baby’s blood cells, but which can be managed with injections.

She says: “I was closely monitored and told my baby was growing strong. I’ll never forget the first time I felt him inside me. I was lying on the couch, it felt like butterflies — like wee pockets of air, wee bubbly bits. It was so exciting.

“We had so much to look forward to and it was all getting so real.”

But at 25 weeks pregnant, her journey took a sudden turn as her waters broke.

She was rushed to hospital but then straight into theatre after she also suffered a prolapsed umbilical cord — when it drops through the cervix into the vagina ahead of the baby and can become trapped against the infant’s body during delivery.

Laura, who worked as a carer for the British Red Cross, said: “I felt petrified, I had no idea what was going on but knew it was big because all of a sudden there were about 15 medics around me.

“I heard them saying something about two to three centimetres. Then I heard something about there still being a heartbeat, but it was very low.

Continues:
By Ruth Warrander

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[sarawawa]

She was literally trying to crawl away from the doctor and kept getting dragged back. That is an actual horror story

[reassimilate]

Makes me want to start a petition to get this doctor’s license revoked, and get this poor woman a great lawyer. Whose with me??

[mntyuu]

What disgusted me the most is that the doctor said “I fixed him” YOU PULLED HIS HEAD OUT OF HIS BODY. YOU CANT JUST SAY YOU FIXED HIM.. I can’t believe she hasn’t been fired.. take her to court

[catherineharrison]

I’ve just checked the GMC and very pleased to say that this doctor is no longer on the GMC register, which means she is not able to practice as a doctor in the UK. What she did to this poor woman and her child is utterly unforgivable, and that’s an understatement. May this family have peace.

[BlackorcaOZ]

That Dr making the mother push when she was only 2 centimeters is a murderer.

[leanneillidge]

How can it be a single error of judgement? She made multiple errors, she was told to give her a c-section and yet she told this poor woman to push, cut her without pain relief multiple times, put her to sleep and then didn’t even tell the mother what had happened to her son! Absolutely disgusting!

I hope that Laura has recovered from this and has found peace.

[whyjordie]

Her putting his ashes in the teddy so she can actually hold him omg my heart broke

[Dontneedahandle]

If there was ever a time you’d want to reach into the screen and hold someone, it would be this time. I’m heartbroken for her. My deepest condolences to this Mom.

[seraphik]

I'm a doctor. I remember seeing a case in medical school where a baby was coming down in breach and got stuck. We literally shoved him back up and then c-sectioned him out. The unspeakable horror of what this poor woman went through... i can't even imagine. i would have nightmares for the rest of my life if i so much as witnessed that, let alone lived through it as the mother.

[sarahlithium]

So after this doctor murdered her baby, she then mutilated him and presented him to her like that. That’s just disturbing…SUE

[vogue]

I can’t even begin to imagine the pain this woman has experienced.

[MusingMermaid]

I would have gone insane if this happened to me. I'm not sure I would've made it out of there without handcuffs after they told me what happened. As a mother to three sons, I feel deep empathy for this woman. I hope the Dr. is facing proper karma for the pain she's caused.

[kimberlimorgan]

This “delivery” traumatized more than just the mother. Imagine being in that delivery room. They literally watched a tiny baby forcefully pulled so hard from his mother’s womb that his body detached from his head. Thank God they were able to shield the mother from seeing him like that. My heart is broken for her. Even though the doctor was able to continue to practice medicine, they should never be allowed to deliver a child again.

[allisonday]

Just reading about this dr after watching this video. The baby, Steven, was breach and the dr was literally pulling on his legs to force him out. I can’t imagine the pain Laura must have been in and the sheer brute force the dr was using to try and drag him out. It’s absolutely horrific and she should be serving prison time for this. It’s utterly inhumane, not an error of judgment. My heart goes out to Laura x

[barbarellababe]

The doctor should go to prison and never be allowed to practise again. What a strong mother
She deserves justice. I hope she has another child and finds happiness she more than deserves it

[chulingguandmama]

you can clearly see that this woman is still in so much pain mentally & emotionally as she is trying to comfort herself by touching her arms 😢 i’m so sorry this happened to you may your little one rest in peace. 🙏🏼

[chaneykane]

The fact that they sewed his head back on so she could see him sounds so traumatizing omg 😭

[sashaaimey]

This is thee single most disturbing thing I've ever heard in my life, and the fact there were no consequences is vulgar. This poor poor woman and her son. My heart is pounding right now.

[anonymouse]

I would have lost my mind. I would have been inconsolable and never recovered. For her to have the strength to talk about it is astonishing. She is so strong

[claireclaire]

"A single error of judgement" ? How is: ignoring advice to perform a caesarean, removing a fetus at 25 weeks, repeatedly cutting a woman's cervix without painkillers, telling her to push when she is 3cm dilated, decapitating her baby, lying to her and failing to tell her what happened A SINGLE ERROR OF JUDGEMENT?!! Don't you mean multiple failings, malpractice, grievous bodily harm, manslaughter and inflicting lasting psychological harm. I mean HOW could any one, let alone a doctor, inflict WORSE harm on someone? It was monstrous. she should never be allowed to touch another person as a care provider.