Local News in Brief : San Clemente : State Sues to Block Midwife From Practice

The state Board of Registered Nursing claims in a lawsuit filed Monday that a nurse midwife was negligent in caring for a San Clemente woman who delivered a stillborn baby after being in labor for almost 24 hours.

In the suit filed in Superior Court in Santa Ana, the nursing board also sought a temporary restraining order barring Abigail Odam, who is employed by Abby’s Maternity Service in the San Diego County community of Del Mar, from her practice. Superior Court Commissioner Julian Cimbaluk denied the request and scheduled a hearing for Sept. 14.

According to the suit filed by the state attorney general’s office, Darlene Caughey, 38, called Odam to her San Clemente home in December, 1987, after she began experiencing labor pains. The next day, as the labor pains persisted, Odam tried to deliver the baby but was unsuccessful. Paramedics were called and Caughey was transported to San Clemente General Hospital, where a doctor performed a Caesarean operation and delivered the stillborn baby, the suit said.

The suit claims that Odam should have realized that Caughey was a high-risk patient who was not suited for home delivery and that the patient should not have been allowed to remain in labor at home for such a long time. The suit also claims that the baby’s death was caused by the long labor, improper monitoring and stress.