A couple whose baby died three days after his birth at Mayo University Hospital has settled a case against the HSE.
The court was told the death of baby Cian Hunt followed two previous still births for the couple who claimed lessons should have been learned from the woman's obstetric history.
The settlement was made without admission of liability and the terms were not disclosed.
Counsel for Breda and David Hunt told the court it was their case the baby's death could have been avoided if Ms Hunt's obstetric history had been properly recognised.
They claimed the pregnancy should have been seen as having an increased risk of sudden unexpected and unpreventable foetal complications and there was an alleged failure to make an adequate plan to deliver the baby safely.
The claims were denied and the HSE contended that the care given was appropriate.
The court was told that an initial plan to deliver baby Cian by C-section at 36 weeks was changed in favour of a natural delivery but that he was ultimately delivered by C-section in poor condition and died in his parent's arms on 6 October, 2018 after being transferred to a Dublin hospital for specialist treatment to reduce swelling of his brain.
Ms Hunt told Mr Justice Paul Coffey in the High Court that her heart was broken beyond repair adding: "Our hope out of our very tragic circumstances is that no other family will ever have to live the nightmare we do."
She said losing their son Cian after their previous two losses with Sarah and David brought with it another layer of grief for herself and her husband David "that no one can even begin to understand".
Over four years on from losing their "precious baby Cian, Our lives and the people we were prior to Cian are so very different", she said.
"Not a day goes by that we don’t wonder what Cian would be like, who he would look like, and how different our lives would be if he were here," she added.
She said they were pleased that since Cian’s death, changes have been made in Mayo University Hospital.
"We hope that they continue to look back on our story and continue to learn from it and make changes to better the maternity service," she said.
She said they were also glad there had been a recommendation made around the formalising of ongoing foetal monitoring after a failed induction in the period prior to a caesarean section.
"While these changes are welcomed it doesn’t change the sad reality that our arms are still empty and hearts still broken," she told the judge.
The terms of the settlement are confidential.
The case was before the court for the division of the statutory sum of €35,000 for mental distress in such cases.
