THE heartbroken mother of an eight-month-old baby who died in October has spoken out after an inquest found his brain injury could have been prevented by Sheffield Children’s Hospital.

Joshua Hughes, who was born 15 weeks’ premature, died on the critical care unit at Sheffield Children’s Hospital on October 9.

His family had raised concerns about the treatment he received following surgery to insert a new IV feeding line after the previous one was removed due to sepsis.

During the procedure, Joshua suffered a cardiac arrest and a CT scan later revealed severe brain damage.

An inquest was held over three days, culminating in assistant coroner Hannah Berry concluding that Joshua died from natural causes.

The cause of his death was related to his respiratory problems - the brain injury did not cause or contribute to his death but it did impact his quality of life and ability to interact with his family.

However, she did say that in the circumstances a narrative verdict was more appropriate.

As part of that narrative verdict she said that Joshua’s post-operative care following his cardiac arrest led to a period of low blood pressure which caused the hypoxic brain injury.

She confirmed that the brain injury was preventable.

Speaking after the hearing, Joshua’s mother Kimberley Bradder said: “It has been extremely difficult re-living the first and final eight months of Joshua’s life throughout the inquest process.

“It was devastating to hear that his brain injury could have been prevented if he had received the appropriate medical care and treatment everyone deserves.

“While I know Joshua had chronic lung disease, I felt that his treatment was often rushed and critical decisions were made without enough thought.

“I had to fight for my son, speak up and suggest a different approach for his oxygen needs, and it was only after I raised my concerns that I was finally listened to and medics tried something new.

“Prior to Joshua’s brain injury, we had been led to believe by his treating clinicians that, while he had respiratory problems, his prognosis was good.

“We were never under the impression that Joshua’s lung problems were likely to cause his death.

“Before his surgery on June 25 2023, Joshua was very alert.

“As soon as he heard my voice, he would be looking all around for me.

“When I held him, he would squeeze my finger, his eyes would be fixed on me and he would smile.

“When he was first taken off the ventilator, he was really sleepy.

“While he did have his eyes open at times, they were not able to focus on anything - they were rolling and looking upwards.

“He was like a completely different baby.”

Kimberley said that losing Joshua has left a void in the family’s life that can never be filled - and hopes that lessons will be learnt by Sheffield Children’s Hospital following the conclusion from the coroner.

“It breaks my heart to think that if more care and attention had been taken, Joshua would not have had to endure so much needless pain and suffering as a result of the brain injury,” she added.

“This not only caused him harm, but also dramatically impacted his ability to interact with us.

“Joshua didn’t have the best start to life but despite everything thrown his way, he fought to stay with us and he loved having cuddles with all the family.

“Losing him has left a void in our lives that can never be filled, and I will forever mourn the moments we should have had together as a family.

“I will continue to fight in his memory, so no other family has to experience the pain we have endured.

“The inquest has shed light on the serious failings in Joshua’s care, and what could have been done to prevent his brain injury.

“I hope that lessons will be learnt and much-needed changes will be implemented so no other parent has to go through this tragedy.”

Dr Jeff Perring, medical director at Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, said: “I wish to express my deepest condolences to Joshua’s family for their loss.

“We are sorry that the care Joshua received fell below the high standards we set ourselves and that Joshua’s family could expect of us.

“We acknowledge that our actions caused Joshua to have brain damage and whilst this was not found to contribute to his death, we have taken this very seriously.

“Our internal investigation showed that there were lessons to learn from Joshua’s care and we have taken immediate action to address these, and we will update the coroner as requested once the remaining action has been completed.”