Ninety-three minutes after Emma Jones gave birth to a severely premature baby boy named Riley Goodger back in 2013, the infant died because the medical staff at Cardiff's University Hospital in South Wales refused to treat him.
Goodger was breathing on his own, but medical personnel claimed that they could not assist the 22-week-old newborn because he was born "eight days before the abortion cut-off and life-saving measures aren't usually taken unless a baby is born after 24-weeks," according to Lifenews.com.
"He wasn't crying but I could see he was breathing - and his heart was beating through his chest wall. But no care could be provided for him even though he was living. They (family) were begging because they knew what had happened with my previous son and they felt it couldn't happen again. It was heartbreaking," Jones said.
Riley's death wasn't the first for the courageous mother. Jones delivered a stillborn baby boy in 2012. Baby Riley was born at just 22 weeks and three days, which made him an extreme preemie. Fully-developed babies are delivered between 37 and 40 weeks, often a full-term pregnancy.
Emma Jones and boyfriend Chris Goodger are paying tribute to their son in the only way they know how: asking hospitals to change medical practices.
The 23-year-old supermarket employee has created a petition with hopes that doctors will monitor and treat any child born before 24 weeks.
The British Association of Perinatal Medicine - in its medical guidelines - recommended that doctors should not attempt to resuscitate babies born before 24 weeks.
If the life-saving measure is successful, the baby has an extremely high risk of developing serious disabilities, the Daily Mail reported. Infants are also more likely to die at home after receiving care at a hospital.
In the new procedures, Jones would like pediatricians to weigh every baby born after 22 weeks in order to determine the newborn's chance of survival. Parents can understand each unique situation and work alongside clinicians to discuss plans and make decisions.
Jones came up with 2,759 signatures to back her mission and handed the paperwork off to the Assembly's Petitions Committee with hope that the new guidelines will be implemented immediately. Adam Cains, the chief executive of Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, has personally apologized to the grieving mother for her loss.
"Thankfully, events like this happen infrequently. But when they do occur, they are very traumatic for the mother, her family and everyone involved. We are delighted that Emma has agreed to work with us to develop a protocol to support both families and clinical staff in these difficult circumstances. Together we will address how we handle these situations and ensure that we make the right choices and learn from this sad event," he said.
"I was happy to receive an official apology from the chief executive of the health board. I was guaranteed a change in procedure so that other mums in my situation won't be ignored or forgotten about in the future," Jones said, according to Lifenews.com.
"We agreed to set procedures in place so that a baby's condition is clearly noted to parents, and the options and outcomes for that baby are clearly discussed. I've also been assured that suitable aftercare would be set up for parents who have to deal with their babies dying."
Though the new initiative doesn't erase her pain from losing her son, Jones feels she is helping other women who are going through similar issues.
"It will be hard work for me as I will regularly have to speak to midwives and consultants, but it feels as though I'm making a contribution to the new procedure," she said.
Jones had an operation on her cervix back in May to improve her chances of giving birth to a healthy, full-term baby.
