Baby faces ongoing health concerns after birth delay in regional SA

Mother 'always thinks' about whether birth delay at regional hospital led to son's ongoing health issuesSBy Sara GarciaTopic:Health Administration2h ago2 hours agoTue 28 Apr 2026 at 5:34amOpposition Leader Ashton Hurn (left) and mother Lauren Barker (right) are calling on the state government to address regional medical staff shortages. (ABC News)In short:A woman who was diverted to a different regional hospital during her complicated labour says her son now has ongoing health issues.She says while she received amazing care by health professionals, she will always wonder if her son's issues, including possible cerebral palsy, were caused by the delays.What's next?The SA government has apologised to the mother and her family, saying it has put measures in place to attract staff to regional hospitals. abc.net.au/news/sa-mother-raises-birthing-delay-concerns-at-regional-hospital/106615888Link copiedShareShare articleA regional South Australian mother who faced a range of stressful diversions during her son's birth says she will always wonder whether his serious and ongoing health concerns were caused by delays in receiving care.Lauren Barker, who lives in Freeling, 60 kilometres north of Adelaide, had planned to deliver her son Laikyn at Gawler Health Service, about 18 kilometres from her home, where she had attended regular appointments throughout her pregnancy.But due to diversions from that hospital and capacity issues at the Lyell McEwin Hospital, in Adelaide's north, on the night she went into labour, she was sent to give birth at Kapunda Hospital, almost 18 kilometres further north. "She [the midwife] said to me it will probably be Kapunda Hospital, I'll have to make some phone calls and get back to you and in that moment I was incredibly shocked, because I didn't know you could have babies at Kapunda Hospital," she said.Lauren Barker was due to give birth at the Gawler Health Service. (ABC News: Eugene Boisvert)"I was going to be having an emergency C-section, my baby was under distress and everything we had planned went completely out the window that night."The impact that had on me and my family ... was huge. We're still unpacking that night now."Ms Barker said from the time she called the midwife to when her son was born "a few hours" had passed.She said Laikyn, who is almost 10 months old, now faced a range of serious health concerns following early onset sepsis, which was picked up after he showed signs of being unwell at two days old.Ms Barker said the diagnosis was picked up by a doctor at the Kapunda Hospital and he was rushed to the Lyell McEwin Hospital.When he deteriorated further, he was rushed to the Women's and Children's Hospital in Adelaide.Lauren Barker says she wonders if her son's ongoing health issues were caused by delays in birthing services. (ABC News)Ms Barker said while the care she received from health professionals at the different services was amazing, she wondered whether the delay in giving birth could be the reason he developed the infection."We always think about if we were able to access the health care we needed, would Laikyn's outcomes or his prognosis been better?" she said.Ms Barker said Laikyn was now showing signs of developmental delays and was being monitored for possible cerebral palsy."This could be due to neurological damage during the period of illness," she said.She has called on the state government to fix the regional health staffing crisis."If Laikyn's voice can help the premier and…

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