THE HSE has offered its sympathy to the family of a 39-year-old Monaghan woman who died moments before her daughter was delivered.
Marcella Gilliland was given an emergency Caesarean section on Tuesday after being rushed to Our Lady of Lourdes hospital in Drogheda, complaining of chest pains.
She died moments before her healthy daughter, Ava, was delivered, the Irish Daily Star reports today.
She had earlier attended a routine appointment at the hospital, but started suffering pains shortly after she returned home.
The Gilliland family – which includes her husband and two young sons – has appealed for privacy.
The HSE issued a statement saying it wished “to express its deepest sympathies to the family. In respecting their wishes, the HSE has agreed to make no further comment.”
The results of a post-mortem are awaited. The family has asked for donations to be made to the Irish Heart Foundation in her memory.
Maternal mortality is extremely rare in this country. Earlier this month, the HSE apologised to the family of a garda sergeant who died while giving birth to twin boys three months prematurely.
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