Kimberley Newark, 31, died along with her newborn daughter Olivia after doctors at Princess Royal Hospital mistook her life-threatening internal bleeding for trapped wind. On September 14, 2024, when she was 34 weeks pregnant, Newark experienced excruciating abdominal pain and lost about 11 liters of blood due to a ruptured splenic artery. Despite the severity, initial treatment involved dismissing her symptoms as colic and providing painkillers. Olivia was born via emergency C-section but died five days later from severe brain damage caused by oxygen deprivation during birth.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-05,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
A baby died after doctors told a mother her life-threatening internal bleeding was probably 'trapped wind', an inquest has been told.
asserted
inquest → die → mother
Kimberley Newark, 31, went to Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath, West Sussex, suffering from excruciating pain in her abdomen on September 14, 2024, when she was 34 weeks pregnant.
Despite the severity of the pain, an inquest heard maternity staff put her symptoms down to trapped wind and gave her painkillers and tablets to treat colic.
asserted
staff → go → colic
She was later transferred to a ward where she was kept under observation.
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she → transfer → observation
But a short time later she began suffering more severe stabbing pains in her abdomen which left her in 'agony'.
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which → begin → agony
When medics examined her and found the baby's heart rate had dropped alarmingly, Kimberley was rushed into theatre for an emergency caesarian-section.
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Kimberley → examine → section
While delivering baby Olivia, doctors discovered that instead of 'trapped wind' Kimberley had suffered a rupture of a major blood vessel, the splenic artery.
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Kimberley → deliver → vessel
That caused her to lose about 11 litres of blood.
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her → cause → blood
Kimberley Newark went to hospital in excruciating pain after a major blood vessel near her stomach had ruptured, causing massive internal bleeding
Kimberley Newark and Yann Trupiano are seen after the inquest into daughter Olivia's death
Olivia was born via C-section but was not breathing and was pale, unresponsive and 'floppy'.
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Olivia → go → section
She was resuscitated and transferred to a specialist baby unit where she was later found to have suffered severe hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy.
The condition occurs when a baby's brain does not receive enough oxygen nor blood flow around the time of birth.
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brain → resuscitate → birth
Kimberley was taken into intensive care, put in a coma and she and newborn Olivia were later transferred to the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton.
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she → take → Brighton
Tests later showed Olivia had no brain activity.
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Olivia → show → activity
Doctors broke the news to Kimberley and she and her partner Yann took the 'heartbreaking' decision to remove ventilator support.
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she → break → support
Olivia died on September 19, 2024, just five days after being born.
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Olivia → die → September
Kimberley was so ill she had to undergo a blood transfusion and she remained in hospital for a month, before finally being discharged on October 17.
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she → have → October
Kimberley Newark is pictured with her husband Yann Trupiano and their daughter Olivia
Kimberley Newark is seen with her daughter Olivia who died after doctors had dismissed the mother's extreme pain from internal bleeding as 'trapped wind'
Today an inquest at Horsham was told the couple had repeatedly raised concerns about Kimberley's deteriorating health in the days leading to her hospital admission.
The hearing was told that as well as suffering from anaemia, constant nausea and exhaustion, she was also suffering from stomach and back pain.
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she → picture → pain
When the pain became excruciating and she fainted at her home, possibly falling on to her stomach, the couple dialled 111 and Yann drove her to hospital.
uncertain
Yann → become → hospital
On arrival Kimberley told doctors she was in extreme discomfort, had vomited, suffered diarrhoea and was in almost constant severe pain in her abdomen.
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she → tell → abdomen
She was examined in the A&E department and, when it was found she had low blood pressure, she was moved to a side cubicle and seen by a consultant.
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she → examine → consultant
Kimberley, who has two older daughters, was told the pain she was suffering was most likely caused by 'trapped wind' and she was given Buscopan – an antispasmodic stomach medication – and paracetamol.
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she → have → Buscopan
She was admitted and transferred to the Bolney Ward – an antenatal/postnatal unit – and her partner Yann was sent home and told to return the following day.
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Yann → admit → Ward
But less than an hour later her condition deteriorated further and the pain began to get much worse.
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pain → deteriorate → ?
In a written statement, Kimberley said: 'The pain became unbearable.
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pain → write → statement
I could no longer take it and screamed in agony.
uncertain
I → take → agony
I pressed the bell.
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I → press → bell
'I was told to be quiet as there were other people on the ward who were sleeping.'
Shortly afterwards she fainted and was aided back into the bed before tests were carried out.
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tests → tell → bed
Medics found Olivia's heartbeat had dropped to 40 beats per minute and a decision was taken to carry out an emergency C-section.
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decision → find → section
Dr Dominic Yu, an A&E consultant who examined Kimberley on her arrival at the Princess Royal, told the inquest there was nothing to suggest Kimberley was suffering from internal bleeding or a splenic artery rupture.
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Kimberley → examine → bleeding
In a statement read out to the court, Kimberley said Olivia was 'loved' and the couple had looked forward to her birth with 'hope, joy and excitement'.
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couple → read → hope
Kimberley said: 'We had looked forward to [Olivia] coming home.
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Olivia → say → ?
Although her life was very short she had a profound effect on our lives.
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she → have → lives
We think about her every day.
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We → think → her
We remember her especially on her birthday when we light a candle for her and hold her close in our hearts.
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we → remember → hearts
We carry her with us always.
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We → carry → us
The University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust maternity services are under investigation following a review commissioned by former health secretary Wes Streeting.
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services → follow → Streeting
A full review of the maternity services will be chaired by Donna Ockenden and is expected to assess the cases of more than 1,000 families from 2018 onwards.
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review → chair → 2018
It comes after up to 15 bereaved families raised concerns over the deaths of their babies between 2021 and 2023.
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families → come → 2021
Previously Kimberley and Yann said their grief was made 'so much worse' by learning other families had also experienced losing babies.
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families → say → babies
The couple believed hospital staff missed vital warning signs and have instructed lawyers Slater and Gordon to represent them at the inquest.
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staff → believe → inquest
A University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust spokesman said two reviews of Olivia's care had been carried out.
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reviews → say → care
Earlier Dr Maggie Davies, chief nurse at the trust, said: 'We are desperately sorry for the loss of Olivia, and the trauma and grief we know this has caused everyone in the family.'
The hearing continues.
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hearing → say → family
The Aporia
