UP to 30 babies and mothers died at a scandal-hit hospital because of failings by midwives and doctors , a damning report is expected to reveal . The independent inquiry into baby deaths within University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust will show that the scale of the scandal was much worse than previously feared . It had been thought that 16 babies and two mothers had died as a result of shambolic care over nearly ten years at a maternity ward within Furness General Hospital in Cumbria . Tragedy : Joshua Titcombe was nine days old when he died from an infection that should have been treated with antibiotics at Furness General Hospital , Cumbria . But after highlighting concerns in around 50 cases , investigators are expected to conclude that neglect contributed to even more deaths . Health officials have tried to cover up their failure to properly investigate poor patient care on the unit . Despite multiple warnings about failings between 2001 and 2012 , the Care Quality Commission gave the hospital a clean bill of health in 2010 . The failure to strike off any nurse , doctor or midwife working at the hospital has enraged victims ’ families . Concerns were first raised in September 2008 when Joshua Titcombe , who was nine days old , died from an infection that should have been treated with antibiotics . His father James said it was ‘ appalling ’ that nobody has been disciplined for the failings that led to the deaths and described the accountability process as ‘ ridiculously slow ’ . Up to 30 babies and mothers died at Furness General Hospital because of failings by midwives and doctors , a damning report is expected to reveal . Mr Titcombe said : ‘ It ’ s been six years since Joshua died and we have should been finding out about [ the care failings ] at the time . It ’ s a sign of how closed and secretive the NHS was . ‘ We were faced with obstacle after obstacle which is an indictment of how the NHS was run at the time . ‘ What happened to protecting mothers and babies ? The timescale is a disgrace. ’ He said there was no reason why culpable nurse and doctors could not have been held to account before the report was published . A number of midwives from the hospital are due to face the Nursing and Midwifery Council ( NMC ) later this year in relation to deaths at the hospital . Grief : James and Hoa Titcombe lost their baby son Joshua in 2008 . Mr Titcombe added : ‘ For Joshua to have died in 2008 and the NMC ’ s processes to still be ongoing is absolutely appalling . How can that be protecting mothers and babies ? ‘ There has been a real failure in the way the professional regulators have worked. ’ The independent inquiry into the trust , expected to be published next month , was finally ordered by ministers due to mounting concerns over the deaths of at least eight mothers and babies . While officials continued to cover up the extent of the hospital ’ s problems , a police investigation was eventually launched after repeated complaints from victims ’ families . The report is expected to lay some of the blame on the ‘ dysfunctional ’ relationship between midwives and doctors on the ward , according to the Sunday Times . The widespread ‘ loss ’ of medical records that contained vital medical information , such as in the case of Joshua Titcombe , will also be highlighted . An internal review published in March 2010 highlighted concerns about the maternity unit including the relations between staff . The CQC , however , failed to read the report and passed the hospital as ‘ safe ’ a year later . When a CQC official produced a dossier showing the inspection was flawed , bosses told him to destroy it to protect the commission ’ s reputation . The extent to which officals have tried to deflect attention from the failing hospital has been branded ‘ rotten ’ by ministers and likened to the Mid-Staffordshire Trust cover-up . The CQC and the parliamentary and health service ombudsman are also thought to be in line for criticism in Dr Bill Kirkup ’ s report . It will raise more questions about how medical staff and those tasked with inspecting the quality of care provided are held to account . A string of senior staff at the trust have ‘ stepped down ’ from their jobs with lucrative pay packets - but nobody has been sacked . Others linked to the alleged cover-up have also left their roles , with families expected to continue with legal action against the trust following the report ’ s publication . Former chief executive of the Morecambe Bay Trust , Tony Halsall , left in March with a £225,000 pay-off and has since moved to the private sector . Jill Finney , former deputy chief executive of the CQC , was awarded £60,000 for distress after she was accused covering up a CQC report . She always denied the allegation . The Morecombe Bay Trust however has refused to say whether it has taken any action against any staff members or whether the nurses are still employed .
Up to 30 babies and mothers died at Furness General Hospital . The hospital said it was investigating the cause of death but had not yet been able to confirm it. Baby should have been treated with antibiotics at hospital in Cumbria . New inquiry will conclude that neglect contributed to even more deaths .