Obstetrical Malpractice – Did Your Child Suffer Trauma During Birth?
A time of celebration should not become a memory of suffering. But if your child undergoes trauma at the moment of birth, the consequences can be extremely painful – either immediately, or in the long-term if symptoms of birth injury arise later in an ailing child’s development.
What is Birthing Trauma?
Birth trauma or obstetrical malpractice is any injury to a newborn that occurs just prior to, during or following delivery. The more common types of injuries include cuts and bruises caused by pressure on the head during birth, facial paralysis, bone fractures, brachial plexus injury (nerve damage which results in paralysis of the arm) and cerebral palsy.
While many of these injuries are purely accidental, others may be caused by preventable mistakes or negligence on the part of health care professionals. Instances in which a doctor, nurse or other healthcare professional may be liable for the injury include delay of delivery, delay of or failure to recognize warning signs that the baby is in distress, improper assessment of mother and child, and the improper use of forceps.
How Birth Trauma Affects Families
While minor birth injuries will often heal on their own, more serious ones may require extensive medical treatment such as therapy and surgeries. The most serious injuries can result in a lifelong disability for the child.
In addition to the physical distress this places on the child and the emotion pain it brings to families, there is often financial hardship that follows. When a child requires constant care and supervision, it may be difficult for a parent to keep a full-time job.
Additionally, the child may require expensive medical and mobility devices or the family may need to hire a care worker to provide some additional assistance. Parents of permanently disabled children often have deep concerns about how that child will be cared for after they are gone.
Are You Entitled to Damages?
A cruel reality for parents of children with birth injuries is that the medical system cannot always meet their full needs, requiring sacrifices in parents’ employment or lifestyle to aid the child. If, however, your child’s birth trauma was caused by a preventable mistake or negligence of a healthcare worker, you may be able to receive financial compensation.
In order to protect your rights and the rights of your child, it is important to speak with an experienced lawyer as soon as possible if you suspect the injury was due to malpractice.
At Will Davidson LLP, birth injuries caused by medical malpractice is one of our specialties – which was demonstrated when our advocacy helped secure $11.5 million for a family against an obstetrician. When you contact our law office, a member of our legal team will speak to you about your experience and help determine whether your child’s birth trauma was preventable.
Our experienced personal injury lawyers can project the impact that such an injury is likely to have financially on your family and your child over their lifetime and can advocate on your behalf either through mediation or litigation.
If your child has suffered an injury due to obstetrical malpractice, contact us today for your free consultation.