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Lucy Letby: colleague denies adding anything to baby’s feed bag

Prosecution alleges Ms Letby tried to murder Child F by intentionally giving him insulin at the Countess of Chester Hospital’s neonatal unit

Prosecution alleges Ms Letby tried to murder Child F by intentionally giving him insulin at the Countess of Chester Hospital’s neonatal unit

Court sketch of Lucy Letby
Court sketch of Lucy Letby. Picture: PA

A nurse who was working with Lucy Letby when a baby was allegedly poisoned has denied adding anything to his feed bag, a court has heard.

Ms Letby is accused of trying to murder the premature twin by intentionally giving him insulin on the Countess of Chester Hospital’s neonatal unit.

The prosecution say she struck during a night shift as the infant, referred to as Child F, received a new feed of nutrients via a bag connected to an intravenous line.

Colleague could not be sure whether she or Lucy Letby put up nutrient bag, court told

On Monday, the jury at Manchester Crown Court was shown a form signed by Ms Letby and her colleague confirming the nutrient bag was changed at 12.25am on 5 August.

The colleague, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said she had no recollection of the specific event and could not be sure whether it was the defendant or herself who put up the bag.

At a point between midnight and 1am, the child’s heart rate and breathing rate ‘suddenly’ went up to concerning levels, the court heard.

Philip Astbury, prosecuting, asked the nurse if she had put anything in the nutrient bag. She replied: ‘Absolutely not.’

She also answered ‘no’ when asked if she gave Child F any insulin at any stage during that shift, in any way.

The court was shown messages sent between the witness and Ms Letby after their night shift, in which they agreed Child F was a ‘worry’ and Letby said: ‘Something isn’t right if he’s dropping like that.’

Child F’s observations had been ‘within normal limits’, trial hears

The nurse said Child F’s observations had been ‘within normal limits’ before midnight. ‘I was really happy with him,’ she said.

She told the court tests from the earlier part of her shift showed he had a ‘good blood sugar level’ and no concerns were raised when she had a handover at the start of her night shift.

She agreed the change was worrying, and added: ‘Especially in the context that you can see from above they [his levels] have been nice and steady and stable for a while.’

The nurse recalled that she asked a doctor to review the baby and tests showed his glucose level was ‘dangerously low’.

The court has previously heard his glucose levels remained low on the day shift of 5 August even after the intravenous line and a connected bag containing nutrients needed to be replaced after swelling to Child F’s leg.

Child F’s blood glucose rose to safe levels later that evening after the nutrients were stopped and extra sugar was given independently, the court was told. He went on to make a full recovery and was later discharged.

Last week, three other colleagues – Shelley Tomlins, Sophie Ellis and Belinda Williamson – also denied giving insulin to the baby.

Ms Letby is accused of trying to kill Child F less than 24 hours after she allegedly murdered his twin brother, Child E, by injecting air into his bloodstream.

The defendant denies murdering seven babies and the attempted murders of ten others between June 2015 and June 2016.

The trial continues.


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