'You saved my babies and kept me alive' - Derbyshire mum praises NHS staff for saving her two neonatal babies
A mother of four now has the 'family she always dreamed of' thanks to lifesaving care from maternity and neonatal staff at Royal Derby Hospital who cared for her twice during two complicated pregnancies - resulting in the team receiving three national awards this week.
Kristen Duffy found out she was pregnant in 2021, aged 40. Kristen and her husband, Mark, already had two children but were delighted to have the opportunity to grow their family.
Due to Kristen's age, and her suffering from a rare chronic mast cell condition, her pregnancy was high risk, and her worst fears were realised when, at only 28 weeks pregnant, contractions started, and she went into labour.
Kristen said: "It is such a surreal experience, knowing your body is no longer doing what it should to grow your baby. It's scary, you feel out of control and vulnerable, as there is nothing you can do to keep your baby inside, just trust the NHS staff caring for you."
Kristen was admitted to hospital under the care of Dr Sanaria Raouf, a Consultant in Fetal Medicine, who was able to prolong her labour and continuously monitor Kristen and her unborn baby until he was born six weeks later at 34 weeks.
Kristen added: "Dr Raouf cared for me with such compassion. She provided me with expert care, but also held my hand so tightly, letting me know that she felt my fears and understood my pain as I anxiously waited in hospital, hoping he would stay inside for another day. I was petrified, but I believed she would do everything possible to keep me and my baby alive."
Fast forward to 2023, Kristen found out she was pregnant again, days before going on her honeymoon. After another complicated pregnancy, history repeated itself, when at 28 weeks, her contractions started and she was admitted to hospital for four weeks under the trusted care of Dr Raouf and the midwifery team, including Midwife Catherine James, who Kristen describes as "her rock such a worrying time".
After successfully prolonging both pregnancies, and carefully monitoring Kristen, Dr Raouf arranged an emergency caesarean each time. Baby Tate was born on 6 October 2021, weighing 4lb 6 oz at 34 weeks, and baby Daisy was born on 18 July 2023 weighing 3lb 8oz at 32 weeks.
After emergency caesareans, both babies required life support and were admitted to the neonatal unit at Royal Derby Hospital where Consultant Neonatologist, Dr Shalini Ojha, and the neonatal team cared for Tate and Daisy. During the first few days of their neonatal care, Kristen was separated from her babies while recovering herself from the traumatic births.
Kristen said: "Tate was my first experience of neonatal care, it felt so unnatural to not have him in my arms after I'd given birth, but I was also in so much physical pain myself. I felt guilty that I hadn't been able to carry him to term, and longed to be with him, while also recovering from the traumatic birth.
"With Daisy, the mental pain was so much more intense as I knew the challenging journey we had ahead of us, and I felt helpless and hopeless.
"When I felt like my world was ending, and I watched by babies fight to stay alive in intensive care, Dr Shalini Ojha and her team made me feel safe and supported with their actions and interventions to save both of my babies."
To support Kristen, Midwife Catherine James, who was caring for her on the labour ward, arranged for an iPad to be placed in Daisy's neonatal cot so Kristen could call in and see her daughter while recovering from surgery.
Kristen added: "Having a permanent image of my fragile, tiny daughter, kept me going. That connection was priceless, for my emotional wellbeing, but also to establish milk production as it helped me feel close to her."
Kristen is grateful to everyone who was involved in her care during both pregnancies, births and neonatal journeys, but particularly Catherine James, Midwife, Dr Sanaria Raouf, Fetal Medicine Consultant. and Dr Shalini Ojha, Consultant Neonatologist.
"I have watched these women save two of my babies, and benefited from them holding my hand, and holding me up, at times when things were incredibly tough, and I didn't think I could survive another day." said Kristen. "To them this is just a job, but their care and compassion is imprinted on my children and my heart, and my family will forever be grateful."
Tate and Daisy are now 3 and 20 months and are doing well. To express their appreciation, Kristen and her family nominated the maternity, fetal medicine and neonatal teams at UHDB for a Baby LifeLine UK Maternity Unit Marvels (MUM) award and the judging panel, made up of key figures in maternity safety, including Donna Ockenden, awarded the team with three national awards which the team received at an awards ceremony in the House of Commons on Thursday 13 March 2025.
Baby Lifeline is a mother and baby charity whose mission is to make care safer and better for every pregnant woman, pregnant person, and newborn baby all over the UK and worldwide. It does this by supporting and working with NHS professionals at the heart of care – buying equipment, developing and providing critical training and conducting research.
Judy Ledger, CEO and founder of Baby Lifeline says: “I am hugely proud of the 2025 Baby Lifeline UK Maternity Unit Marvels (MUM) Awards. As a charity that works closely with healthcare professionals, we recognise that teams working under intense pressure give their all to help bring babies into the world safely.
"The UK MUM Awards™ is an opportunity to thank and celebrate amazing professionals who have made a difference to the care that families receive across the UK. The awe-inspiring nominations this year have come from both families and health professionals and demonstrate the ultimate in teamworking and dedication from professionals across the UK.
"We are so grateful to the families who shared their experiences with us - it has been a true privilege to read about all the brilliant work taking place, even in the most difficult of circumstances. It is obvious from speaking to the families that the teams' special efforts to take care of them and their babies will never be forgotten."