MINUTES before baby Amelia Williams died at the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of the Port of Spain General Hospital (PoSGH) on April 2, her parents were told by a doctor that she had "bacteria in she head" and nothing could be done to save her life.

Amelia was one of seven premature babies who died after an outbreak of a bacterial infection at the NICU earlier this month.

In a signed pre-action protocol letter from Freedom Law Chambers to North West Regional Health Authority (NWRHA) CEO Anthony Blake, attorney Sue Ann Deosaran said Amelia's parents Tinelle Saunders and Gus Williams received a devastating phone call from the PoSGH at 3 am on April 2, saying that Amelia was not improving and would not make it through the day.

Deosaran said the Saunders and Williams were asked to wait in a room adjacent to the NICU when they arrived at the hospital.

While in the room, she continued, the couple "were extremely worried and kept praying for a miracle for their only child to make it through."

Deosaran lamented that Saunders and Williams soon received the most traumatic news they could have as parents.

"One of the doctors advised the couple that baby Amelia was braindead 'because the bacteria gone to she head and it too late to save she'."

Deosaran said, "The doctor then told these already heartbroken parents that the best thing they could do was to let their baby go in peace and that there was nothing more they could have done because they put her on too much antibiotics. A few moments later, baby Amelia passed."

In the letter, Deosaran recalled happier times for Saunders and Williams when Amelia was born at the PoSGH maternity ward on March 5, after Saunders was flown there by helicopter from the Scarborough General Hospital in Tobago.

"To Tinelle and her boyfriend, Gus Williams, baby Amelia was a blessing. Amelia was their first baby together, a dream they had held close for some time. They meticulously prepared for their baby's arrival, excitedly buying tiny clothes, pampers, baby bottles, a crib, and were in the early stages of preparing a nursery.

"The cashier and truck driver worked extremely hard to save up for their baby and (were) looking forward to starting a family together. The young couple was eagerly anticipating their future as a family and had even begun discussing marriage."

March 7 was the first time that Saunders saw Amelia.

Deosaran said Saunders "observed her daughter in an incubator, hooked up to a ventilator and tubes connected to her body."

Though this was concerning to Saunders, she continued, she trusted the reassurances of one of the nurses that her baby was "doing okay" and "there was no need to worry as this was normal for premature babies."

Deosaran said, "Amidst the whirlwind of emotions, Tinelle and Gus were overcome with excitement upon the realisation that they were finally parents."

The couple made the effort to visit Amela daily in the NICU, even after Saunders was discharged from the hospital.

Deosaran said, "Each day, their visit was filled