Lucy Letby colleagues tell murder trial they did not give baby insulin

Three nurses who worked on the ward where Lucy Letby allegedly poisoned a baby have told her murder trial they did not give insulin to the child.

Ms Letby is accused of attempting to kill the boy, referred to as Child F, at Countess of Chester Hospital.

She has denied murdering seven babies and attempting to murder 10 others.

Nurses Shelley Tomlins, Sophie Ellis and Belinda Williamson were on duty in August 2015 over the days after Child F, a twin, was born.

Ms Letby, 32, is alleged to have intentionally added insulin to the infant's intravenous feed bag during a night shift, less than 24 hours after she allegedly murdered his twin brother, Child E, on the hospital's neonatal unit.

The twins had been born prematurely and Ms Letby, originally of Hereford, cared for both boys, the jury has heard.

The court was told feed bags were kept in a padlocked fridge at the unit, while medications were also stored in locked cupboards.

One set of keys for these would be passed among the nurses with no formal log or record, the court heard.

Jurors have heard how Child F's heart rate surged and his blood sugars dropped dangerously low after a feed was started shortly after midnight on 4 August.

The following day Ms Tomlins was on duty when a new intravenous line needed to be fitted.

Giving evidence via video from Australia, she was asked by prosecutor Philip Astbury if she had "at any point" administered insulin to Child F.

She replied "no".

Ms Ellis, giving evidence from behind a screen, was asked the same question and replied "absolutely not".

Shift leader Ms Williamson was also asked if she had "at any stage" administered insulin to Child F and she also replied "no".

The court was told Child F recovered in the following days, but his twin brother, who was born a minute earlier, died after air was allegedly injected into his bloodstream by Ms Letby.

After Child F's alleged poisoning Ms Letby messaged a colleague to say something was "not right" about the infant, the court has heard.

She also arranged to go salsa dancing the following evening.

A court order bans the reporting of the identities of the children allegedly attacked by Ms Letby, while identifying parents or witnesses connected with the children is also banned.

The trial continues.

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