Hitchin mum's bid to raise awareness of deadly group B strep

Joshua Martin was diagnosed with group B strep (GBS) infection three days after he was born at Lister Hospital in Stevenage in 2021.

After Joshua was born, mum Louise Martin became concerned that he had started grunting and was not interested in feeding – signs of GBS infection.

Joshua suffered brain damage following the infection (Image: Courtesy of Louise Martin)

Following a review, the pair were sent home on January 2, 2021 - the day after Joshua was born.

However, once home Louise continued to be concerned her son was not feeding and had started grunting again. Louise called the hospital twice with her concerns, but the midwives told her there was nothing to worry about.

The following morning, Joshua, who had not woken up in the night for a feed and was floppy and cold, was taken back to hospital.

Joshua was put on a ventilator when he returned to hospital at three days old (Image: Courtesy of Louise Martin)

He started treatment for suspected sepsis – where the body attacks itself in response to an infection. The day after his readmission Joshua was put on a ventilator and diagnosed with GBS meningitis.

Joshua suffered severe brain damage. He spent around six weeks in hospital before being discharged to Keech Hospice and thereafter allowed home.

The tot continued to live with severe complications and sadly died in his mother’s arms aged eight months. 

Joshua Martin (Image: Courtesy of Louise Martin)

Louise instructed expert medical negligence lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate their care under East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust, which runs Lister Hospital.

The 39-year-old has spoken for the first time about her family’s heartbreak and joined her legal team in raising awareness of the signs of GBS infection.

Louise said: “I wasn’t advised about GBS in any of my other pregnancies and the only thing I remember during my pregnancy with Joshua was a midwife asking at an antenatal appointment if I’d previously been diagnosed with GBS, which I hadn’t."

Joshua Martin (Image: Courtesy of Louise Martin)

Louise and her husband have two daughters aged 11 and seven. The couple also had a stillborn son in 2012 caused by a blood clot in his brain, resulting in Louise’s subsequent pregnancies being classed as high-risk.

“I didn’t know what GBS was at the time, so I didn’t think more of it," she continued.

"I’ve always been nervous during my pregnancies as a result of losing our first baby but my pregnancy with Joshua felt relatively straightforward.

“Shortly after Joshua was born, he began grunting and wasn’t feeding, I was worried.

“To be finally told several days later that Joshua had GBS infection was hard to accept. It was such an emotional time seeing him so poorly while having questions as to why this has happened.

“While he defied the odds to make it home, he continued to be severely affected by his injuries. He spent a lot of time at Keech Hospice, and without their care not only for Joshua but in supporting us as a family we would have found the situation unbearable.

“Joshua was such a brave fighter, he encountered endless procedures and hospital stays. At the end of August 2021, he became very weak and when he eventually lost his fight at home surrounded by his family it was devastating for us all.

“The pain of losing Joshua is still as raw now as it was then, we loved him so much. We have lost our beautiful son, our daughters a brother who they adored, and grandparents have lost their only grandson.

“While it’s too late for Joshua I just hope that by speaking out I can help raise awareness around GBS. If needs be, mums should push to be tested. If I can help others by sharing what happened to our family then maybe Joshua’s death won’t have been totally in vain."

Louise has recommended GBS private testing to many of her friends, some of whom have been diagnosed and went on to receive antibiotics in labour. 

It comes after Irwin Mitchell secured her an undisclosed settlement from the Hospital Trust in connection with Joshua’s care. The hospital trust did not admit liability.

A spokesperson for the East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust said: “We would like to offer our sincere condolences to Joshua's family following his sad death in 2021, and commend Louise's efforts to raise awareness of Strep B.

"Our midwives follow national and local guidance for Strep B and, through this guidance ensure the risks – and how to test for them – are discussed antenatally through our community midwives.

"If this was not the experience of Louise and her family, our Chief Nurse would welcome discussions of how to improve our practice and safety outcomes and would encourage them to get in touch."

The family has raised money in Joshua's memory for Group B Strep Support and Keech Hospice.

Alexandra Highfield, the specialist medical negligence lawyer at Irwin Mitchell representing Louise said: “What happened to Joshua vividly highlights to dangers of GBS infection and the need for everyone to be aware of the signs and symptoms.

“Our mission is to ensure that no other family has to endure the pain of losing a child to a preventable infection, and our hearts go out to the Martin family at this time.”