I realised the baby I was caring for in hospital was not my daughter during a nappy change after a midwife handed me the wrong baby

A mother was left in a state of shock after realising that the baby she was caring for was not her newborn daughter.

Maisie Beth, 22, from Poole, was left stunned when she went to change her daughter’s nappy only to find that the newborn was a boy.

The mother stormed into the maternity office at Poole Hospital demanding to know where her child, Isabella, nicknamed Belle, had been taken.

She said: ‘God knows what would’ve happened, I could’ve breastfed this baby or the mother could’ve woken up to an empty crib.’

Maisie gave birth to her daughter in September, and due to needing phototherapy – a treatment for jaundice using LED lights – and having a tube fitted, Belle had to be monitored every two hours and was placed in a nursery on her own.

Maisie explained that one evening she went to visit her baby and, on her way, back to her room, she found the midwife in the office with Belle.

She was confused because Belle was meant to be kept in her crib due to needing phototherapy but without argument she just accepted it and made her way back to her room with the child.

Before long, it was time for Maisie to return her newborn to the phototherapy crib, which is when she made her shocking discovery.

The midwife was in fact not looking after Belle in the office and had handed her the wrong baby.

While getting Belle undressed for the crib, Maisie changed her nappy and realised the baby was a boy, and she had someone else’s newborn boy.

In a complete panic, Maisie ran to the office to find her daughter. The midwife explained that Maisie looked identical to the little boy’s mother, and therefore, she had handed over the wrong baby.

Maisie said: ‘I went to the toilet [and] on my way back the midwife came out of the office and told me to come in because they had Isabella in there. I just assumed they had taken her out with her phototherapy crib while I was in the toilet.

‘They told me they had her there for a while because shed been crying a lot. I did think this was strange because she wasn’t allowed out of her phototherapy crib, and I’d also just been cuddling a baby in the nursery.

Maisie (pictured) discovered she was caring for the wrong child when she went to change her daughter’s nappy only to find that she was holding a boy 

After being born in September, Maisie was placed in her own hospital nursey to receive phototherapy 

A midwife told Maisie that she had taken Belle out of her crib and into the office because she was crying 

After the shocking discovery, Maisie’s first thought was that someone had stolen her newborn Belle 

Maisie continued: ‘I thought: ‘Oh gosh, I hope nobody noticed that I was cuddling a baby that wasn’t mine.

‘Nurses then told me that she [the other mother] looked exactly like me. At this point, it was so early and I was two days postpartum, so we just didn’t question anything and I took the baby back to my bed.

‘The mother was asleep on a completely different ward from me and I don’t know if she ever knew that the baby was passed to me.

‘My instant reaction was that somebody had stolen my baby. I was absolutely terrified after four years of infertility. I thought I’d lost my baby after giving birth to her.

When Maisie was reunited with Belle in the hospital, she was peacefully sleeping in her hospital crib 

The nurse explained to Maisie that she had confused Belle for the other baby because she looked like the other mother 

Maisie is unsure whether the mother of the newborn boy was aware of the situation regarding her son and Belle 

Maisie was relieved to be reunited with Belle, but felt an overwhelming sense of guilt for the other mother 

‘As far as I’m aware, Isabella was still in her phototherapy crib this whole time across the hall from me, but I have no idea what went on while I was in bed with the other baby.

‘When I saw her again, the relief I felt is unexplainable. She was still asleep in her little car and it didn’t seem like anything had happened to her. 

‘But I instantly felt an overwhelming feeling of guilt for the other mother. After the incident it was never really spoken about again.’

Lorraine Tonge, director of midwifery at University Hospitals Dorset, said: ‘We are investigating an incident in our maternity unit in September 2023 in which a baby was handed to the wrong mother. 

‘We deeply regret any distress that was caused and have reached out to the mother to offer her support. 

‘We would urge her to get back in touch with us to assist us in our investigation. The safety of our parents and babies is the highest priority and we are committed to providing full support to the affected families.’