The Massachusetts Department of Public Health is investigating the South Shore Hospital in Weymouth after two mothers died soon after childbirth. The state agency says the probe is “standard protocol” because childbirth-related fatalities don’t happen very often and these two deaths occurred within weeks of one another.
The women are Christie Lee Fazio, who died after delivering her son on December 14 and Colleen Celia, 32, whose death was on January 15. The Boston Herald says that Fazio, 30, died from cesarean section complications and Celia’s death was because she experienced an amniotic fluid embolism-this complication, which involves the fluid entering the woman’s bloodstream, has an 80% fatality rate. Prior to delivery, Celia was already considered a high-risk pregnancy because she had placenta previa.
South Shore Hospital deals with about 3,600 births annually. Hospital officials are adamant they did all they could for the moms. The state has designated it a level III program, which means the hospital offers advanced care to women with risky pregnancies as well as neonatal intensive care services.