A 45-YEAR-OLD pregnant woman died after a “disastrous” lack of oxygen at a Buckinghamshire hospital, an inquest heard.

A hearing was told that tubes meant to give Joanne Lockham life-saving oxygen were not put in place correctly.

Bolton-born Mrs Lockham, a nurse, had received IVF treatment to conceive what was her first child.

Doctors moved to give her oxygen after the Wendover resident went into cardiac arrest as her child was delivered by caesarean section at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, Aylesbury on October 9 2007.

The “intubation” process gives the patient oxygen, the hearing was told. She was given a general anaesthetic.

Buckinghamshire coroner Richard Hulett today said the placement of the tubes left Mrs Lockham “without any significant input of oxygen” for 30 minutes.

Another doctor arrived about half-an-hour later and corrected the tubing.

Mr Hulett asked anaesthetist Dr Frederick Smith, who did not correct the tubes: “Thirty minutes is a bit of a disaster isn’t it?”

Dr Smith said: “Yes.”

Mr Hulett said “there was a never a successful intubation” until Dr Alex Bogdanov arrived about half-an-hour after the tubes were put in place.

He said to Dr Smith of the incorrect tubing: “With the benefit of the evidence we now have, you would accept that is not quite right?”

Dr Smith said: “I would completely accept it.”

Dr Bogdanov, a senior consultant who was called back to the hospital, said: “It was wrongly placed and wasn’t doing anything useful.”

Dr C. Nagendra Prasad told the inquest he struggled to intubate Mrs Lockham using the tubing as it was too “floppy” at about 7pm. This took three attempts.

Mr Hulett said it was essential that this process worked.

He said: “The patient has got no spontaneous breathing and if they maintain in that state without being intubated that patient, or any patient, will die.”

Dr Smith said: “Events were so fast moving and situations so dire that Dr Prasad did not have the opportunity to brief me about his patient.”

He said this left him with “no idea” of the patient and later said: “I think I may have been placed in a position of being in charge without realising it.”

Team members had similar experience, he added.

Dr Prasad told the Amersham hearing, before a jury, that he was in a “complete state of shock” as her condition worsened.

Dr Smith said: “Dr Prasad didn’t say much at all.”

Both doctors showed clear signs of distress as they questioned over their involvement in the case. The hearing had to be stopped as an emotional Dr Prasad was questioned.

Christopher Johnston, a solicitor representing the Lockham family, said: “The family are driven by looking to prevent a similar event happening in the future.”

Mrs Lockham died on October 11 after a test showed she was brain stem dead. Her life support machine was disconnected at 11pm.

She died from a brain injury from a lack of oxygen caused by cardio and respiratory arrest two days after giving birth.

The hearing continues.