Natural birth doctor accused of caesarean baby death blunder

Dr Susan Bewley, who has spoken out against the rise in "unnecessary" caesareans, allegedly delayed carrying out the emergency procedure until it was too late to save the child.

The 49-year-old consultant is due to face a disciplinary hearing at the General Medical Council and could be struck off.

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But colleagues claim the tragedy was not her fault as she had not been given a proper briefing about expected complications before she delivered the baby.

One colleague said: "She was not given the woman's notes and was unaware that the baby was at risk.

"She didn't deliberately decide to hold back on the caesarean. When she realised the baby was in difficulty she acted quickly but it was too late.

"Susan is very distressed by what happened but the view is that she would have acted differently if she had been briefed about scans that showed the baby was at risk and needed to be delivered sooner rather than later.

"She is a controversial figure and she seems to have been made the scapegoat for what has gone wrong."

The tragedy happened at Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital in London in December 2004 but Dr Bewley has been allowed to continue in her job.

The mother who lost her baby had caesareans to deliver her first two children but Dr Bewley apparently felt she was capable of a normal delivery for her third.

As complications developed during labour, she performed an emergency caesarean. But the infant died soon after the birth.

After an investigation by the Healthcare Commission, Dr Bewley and a junior doctor were reported to the GMC and a midwife was reported to the Midwifery Council.

Dr Bewley, who has worked at Guy's since 1994 and is a former head of the obstetrics and gynaecology department, is the only one to face disciplinary charges as a result of the complaint and will face a hearing on Monday.

The panel will decide whether Dr Bewley's 'examination, assessment and treatment' of the mother was 'of a standard expected of a reasonably competent obstetrician'.

Caesareans carry an increased risk of death for mother and child and Dr Bewley has been at the forefront of calls for more natural births.

In Britain almost a quarter of all babies are now born by caesarean. Its popularity has been fuelled by celebrities and those 'too posh to push'.

Last year Dr Bewley and two colleagues warned in the British Medical Journal that women were being given needless caesareans because of the decisions made by inexperienced young doctors and a shortage of skilled obstetricians.

Dr Bewley, a former co-chairman of the Gay and Lesbian Association of Doctors and Dentists, lives with her female partner in South London and has a nine-year-old son, to whom she gave birth naturally at home.

A spokesman for Guy's and St Thomas' said: "Apart from the current case under consideration by the GMC, there have been no other concerns raised about Dr Bewley's clinical capability, her commitment to her patients or her judgment.

"She is highly regarded by clinical staff who work with her and has not been the subject of any disciplinary action or any investigation into personal or professional misconduct.

"It would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this time."