Lalene Malik was rushed to Northwick Park Hospital in north-west London by her family after suffering a excruciating stomach ache at home in Greenford, west London, on 26 March. The 23-year-old, who said she had been prescribed the contraceptive pill five months earlier and had two negative pregnancy tests in February, believed she must have constipation. Two-week-old baby Mohamed Ibrahim sleeps in his mother’s arms at Northwick Park Hospital in Harrow. (PA) But her mother, Sumra, had an “intuition” that something was wrong when her daughter started crying in pain after going to the hospital bathroom while waiting to see her and sounding the alarm with nearby doctors, she said. Malik. Ms Malik was about to rinse when the tiny hand of baby Mohammed Ibrahim was found in the bowl, leaving her terrified that her and her son’s lives were in danger. He believes the baby may have been stuck for up to seven minutes before being rescued by doctors. “I was gone. My mind was empty. They put me in another room because I was obviously crying and my mom was crying. It was a complete shock and a trauma for both of us and I felt my life was in danger,” he said. “(My mom) started crying and (said) to me: ‘Don’t you know you have a baby?’ I’ve been pale ever since.” Doctors who rescued the baby said he “looked lifeless” and was not breathing, but resuscitation efforts were successful. Dr Ewa Grocholski, who helped save Ibrahim by squeezing his chest after removing him from the bowl, said it was “the most amazing experience of her (her) medical career”. “Fortunately, we found out in time,” he told the PA news agency. Ms Malik went to A&E with stomach cramps on March 26 and gave birth to her baby in the toilet without knowing she was pregnant and without any external signs of pregnancy. (PA) “I have never seen (a baby born) in such conditions. I’ve seen young ladies like Lalene before they came to A&E without knowing they were pregnant and giving birth in the A&E department, but it was always in a safer place. “She was in bed or it was slower, so we would have noticed they were giving birth before that happened.” He described Ms Malik as a “hero” and said it was “unbelievable” that she had given birth despite having no previous knowledge of the pregnancy. Ibrahim was born a full month old and is now healthy after being given oxygen and carefully monitored by hospital staff. Ms Malik has described her son as a “miracle” baby, but has blamed her family doctor, Elm Trees in Greenford, for failing to do tests that could prove she was pregnant. “If I had known I was pregnant, I would have loved those moments when I was shopping, preparing things for the baby,” she said. Her husband was abroad at the time and in “absolute shock” when he learned of the birth, Ms Malik added. A&E nurse Helen Flanagan holds two-week-old baby Mohammed Ibrahim at Northwick Park Hospital in Harrow (PA) The student, who is doing a master’s degree in international relations at Roehampton University, said she had no plans to have a child and had taken the pill from October to January after being prescribed by a doctor. She said she returned to her doctor several times after experiencing symptoms such as weight gain and shortness of breath and that she had stopped taking the contraceptive. Ms Malik said she underwent a blood test at the surgery in March, but was later told she had no problem and the results were not available. “I called again three days later and they said ‘oh, we can not find anything because the person who did the blood test did not move it properly, so come back three to six months later,’” he said. Mrs. Malik wanted to finish her master’s degree in International Relations, but life had other plans (PA) Two weeks later, Ibrahim was born, Ms Malik said, praising doctors and nurses at Northwick Park Hospital for their efforts to keep him healthy. The mother added: “It’s a blessing and I’m happy for the baby, but honestly the surgery should have said something because I told them I was married and I wanted to move on with my bosses.” She said she was determined to finish her university, but had to postpone until July to take care of little Ibrahim. Elm Trees surgery said Ms Malik’s experience was below expected standards of care and the matter would be investigated. The clinic said in a statement: “We are very sorry to learn that Ms. Malik’s experience is below the standard of care we expect from our services. Rest assured that the matter will be fully investigated. “ PA
