Mum tried to take own life after baby son's death

The mother of an eight-week-old baby boy who died in hospital after a "catalogue of failures", says the "dishonesty" of the trust involved led to her trying to take her own life.

Ben Condon died at Bristol Children's Hospital in 2015 due to a respiratory infection and a second inquest has been ordered into his death.

Jenny Condon, 43, said: "It's destroyed me as a person, my mental health, it's constantly having to relive that day over and over."

University Hospitals Bristol and Weston (UHBW) NHS Foundation Trust has previously apologised for its failings.

The first inquest verdict was quashed by the High Court after a 10-year legal battle, and the second inquest is due to begin on Monday.

A UHBW spokesperson said: "The trust is committed to assisting the coroner with his inquiry on this second inquest, and it would be inappropriate to comment any further at this stage."

Mrs Condon, who no longer lives with her husband Allyn Condon, a former British Olympic sprinter, told the BBC that in October 2024 she nearly took her own life because of the stress caused by what she says was the hospital's lack of openness.

The 43-year-old, from from Weston-super-Mare, said: "I tried to end my life and ended up under the crisis team and in the residential mental health unit for two-and-a-half weeks.

"I'm very lucky that I've got their support for this inquest.

"But it's all leading up to this inquest. It's just this 10 years of constantly having to re-live the trauma.

"You cannot grieve. It destroyed our marriage."

Mrs Condon said the family were not told about a secondary infection Ben had.

Ben's dad, Allyn Condon, who is also from Weston-super-Mare, said the hospital took "endless" measures to cover it up.

Born at 29 weeks, Ben weighed just under 3lb at birth and spent six weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit at Southmead Hospital in Bristol.

Three days after being taken home, Ben developed a small cough.

When his condition worsened, he was transferred to Bristol Children's Hospital where doctors diagnosed Human Metapneumovirus (hMPV) a virus that normally causes cold symptoms, but very rarely can be more serious in young children.

While most children with the virus make a full recovery, Ben's developed a secondary bacterial infection in his lungs and blood.

He died following a cardiac arrest on 17 April 2015.

An inquest in 2016 found giving antibiotics would not have prevented Ben's death.

It was later revealed antibiotics were not delivered to Ben fast enough, and his death was avoidable.

A report by the Health Service Ombudsman (HSO) said the avoidable death of a baby boy in Bristol - referring to Ben - shows how mistakes are often made worse by "defensive" and "insensitive" responses from hospitals.

The HSO report, said the NHS has "ingrained defensiveness" when it comes to patients suffering avoidable death.

Mr Condon, 50, said he blames the trust for not acting quick enough and failing to give details on what happened to Ben for seven weeks.

He told the BBC: "It was several weeks later we found out they had not done those blood tests.

"We believe he's got an infection and they are going to treat it and they didn't treat it... Ever since [the hospital] disputed that they felt he had an infection and obviously you heard the outcome of the first inquest that they suggested that there was never any signs of an infection."

Shortly after Ben's death, a recorded meeting was held between the hospital and Ben's parents.

After the parents left the room senior staff admitted the family were "absolutely right" and had "a point", and then asked if their comments could be removed from the recording.

Mr Condon campaigned for years to get more information and a second inquest by handing out leaflets outside the hospital.

An internal trust email accused the Condons of having a vendetta and said this was having a "very profound effect on individual staff involved".

The email said: "There was no way we could have a conversation with them, they were just too distraught, particularly mum.

"In fact her wailing and grief was so loud that the rest of the parents left the unit."

The trust has since apologised.

Mr Condon was then interviewed by Avon and Somerset Police after complaints of harassment were made by two doctors at the hospital who were among several named in the leaflet.

The couple strongly deny this allegation.

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