Sleeping baby clenches his parent's fingers; Soft focus and blurry
Common Causes of Birth Injuries
According to the Centers for Disease Control, roughly 28,000 babies yearly will suffer birth injuries. In addition, some mothers may also suffer permanent injuries during childbirth. Here are some of the common causes of birth injuries:- Failure to properly monitor the health of the baby during the prenatal care process
- Not providing the proper prenatal care to the mother that impacts the well-being of the child.
- Failing to order a cesarean section delivery when the mother has high risk factors or the baby measures very large
- Failure to stop the vaginal delivery process and order a c-section when there are complications during labor and delivery that place the baby’s health at risk
- Improper use of instruments during labor and delivery
For a free legal consultation with a birth injury lawyer serving Long Island, call 516-451-7900
Common Maternal Birth Injuries
Birth injuries do not just happen to a child. A mother can suffer serious injuries in childbirth, especially when the doctor fails to use the proper care. Here are some of the common injuries that mothers will suffer during childbirth:- Severe vaginal tearing
- Uterine rupture
- Hemorrhage (both during labor and delivery and postpartum)
Long Island Birth Injury Lawyer Near Me 516-451-7900
Cerebral Palsy Is One of the Most Common Birth Injuries
Cerebral palsy is one of the most serious and lasting birth injuries associated with medical negligence. Roughly one in 500 children will be born with cerebral palsy. Most often, cerebral palsy results from trauma to the head during the labor and delivery process, causing permanent brain damage to the baby. Depending on its severity, cerebral palsy can range from a moderate condition that makes walking difficult to a very serious condition that can cause issues that include:- An inability to walk
- Excessive floppiness
- Problems with learning
- Difficulty speaking
- Respiratory challenges
- Emotional and psychological difficulties
Other Types of Birth Injuries
In addition to cerebral palsy, here are the other common birth injuries that children may suffer:- Brachial plexus palsy – This injury occurs when the baby suffers shoulder dystocia (the shoulder gets caught). The child may not have full use of their arms because there is damage to the nerves. Some injuries may be permanent, and the child might never be able to flex and rotate their arms. The most common form of this injury is called Erb’s Palsy.
- Caput succedaneum – This injury occurs when the scalp has significant bruising as the baby passes through the birth canal. In severe cases, the baby’s head will have a distorted shape that may not go away.
- Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy – Decreased oxygen flow to the brain can cause permanent damage. All it takes is a momentary lapse of oxygen to risk significant brain damage. Oxygen can be cut off when the umbilical cord gets wrapped around the baby’s neck or there are problems with blood flow to the placenta.
- Fetal stroke – The baby can suffer a fetal stroke when there is significant trauma during delivery or when the doctor fails to provide the mother’s proper prenatal care. The baby may suffer from a subcarinal hemorrhage that can lead to permanent brain damage.
Holding the Doctor Legally Responsible for Medical Malpractice
For any of these injuries, your family wants to hold the doctor accountable, both for what their negligence has done to your child and because your family will need the money to pay for the necessary extensive care. Some challenges go along with filing a birth injury lawsuit. Since a birth injury claim is a medical malpractice case, you ask the jury to find that the doctor did something wrong in the prenatal care or the labor and delivery process. No one expects doctors to be perfect, but they should always uphold their standard of care. The doctor must act as a reasonable doctor should under the circumstances. You will compare what the doctor did to what a reasonable doctor of average skills and experience should have done. You are not comparing the doctor to an industry-leading specialist at the top of the profession. Complete a Free Case Evaluation form now
Why an Experienced Birth Injury Lawyer Is a Must
You need an experienced birth injury lawyer because there are many challenges to overcome:- You need a lawyer to figure out exactly what the doctor did because they can make it difficult to piece together what happened from the medical records.
- Juries tend to sympathize with doctors because they have a natural amount of respect for a knowledgeable medical professional.
- An unwanted medical outcome is not the same thing as medical negligence.
How Negligence Can Cause a Birth Injury
Here are some examples of how a doctor’s negligence can cause a birth injury:- Failing to order a Cesarean section when the mother is in the middle of prolonged and difficult labor that puts the baby at risk
- Failing to notice any risk factors that can cause complications during labor and delivery
- Failing to diagnose preeclampsia or other prenatal condition
- Incorrect usage of a medical instrument that injures the baby
- Failing to monitor the baby’s heart rate and oxygen intake during labor and delivery
- Making a mistake in either allowing the mother to carry the baby for too long or delivering the baby prematurely when the risks are too high
Birth Injury Lawsuits Are Challenging but Necessary
Birth injury lawsuits can be difficult. The doctor’s insurance company and the hospital that employs them may fight your lawsuit because they know their liability can be very high. Since many birth injuries are permanent, families often receive large jury awards. Some of these can be well over $1 million, depending on the harm to the baby. Knowing that it is not always easy to prove medical malpractice, defendants may sit back and make you meet your burden of proof. It is not easy, but it is also not impossible. However, birth injury lawsuits are necessary when a doctor or hospital has harmed your child. If your child will not live a normal life, they will critically need that money. In addition, your family will want justice for the serious injuries that a doctor you trusted caused your child.Your Family’s Compensation in a Birth Injury Lawsuit
If your lawsuit is successful, your family can be entitled to significant financial compensation. You are dealing with considerable costs when your child has suffered a birth injury. The first and most immediate concern is the medical costs that you must bear. Your child will need medical care, perhaps for the rest of their life. In addition, your child may need extensive therapy and assistance just to live as normal of a life as they can. Not only can you recover the full medical costs associated with the injury, but the following might also be a part of your family’s financial compensation: - Lost income when your child’s injury will prevent them from working when they grow up (or when parents need to leave their job or miss time from work to care for their child)
- Pain and suffering, which can be very high when your child must live their entire life with a serious injury
- The costs of special education when the child cannot function in a normal school environment
- The embarrassment and mental anguish that your child may suffer as a result of their condition
- The costs of adaptive equipment to help your child with daily functions.
An Attorney Will Value Your Damages in a Birth Injury Case
One of the major difficulties with a birth injury lawsuit is knowing how much to seek in compensation. It may be a challenge to know early in your child’s life what their needs will be in the future. Making the situation even harder is that you only have two years from the time of the injury to file your lawsuit. An experienced birth injury lawyer will work with many experts to determine what you may be due. The calculation is not a back-of-the-envelope one that you can afford to get wrong because this money needs to be there to care for your child in the future. Then, you will need to negotiate with an insurance company and a hospital to obtain the right compensation if you choose to settle your case. When you are dealing with such large numbers, there will be a much wider gap in your numbers that you will need to surmount. You always have some leverage. Assuming you can convince a jury of the doctor’s negligence, seriously injured children are sympathetic plaintiffs. Defendants are legitimately afraid to face a jury when they know you have a strong case because they can pay a large price.What a Birth Injury Lawyer Will Do for Your Case
There are many reasons why you need to call a birth injury lawyer. Here are some:- An attorney knows how to get the records you need to help you prove your case.
- Your lawyer can select the right expert witnesses and work with them to help prove that the doctor departed from the standard of care required under the circumstances.
- We will work with other experts to place a value on the amount of damages that you should seek (this is one of the most critical tasks that your attorney will perform)
- Hospitals and medical malpractice insurance companies know the high stakes and may do everything they can to fight against your claim or reduce your compensation, and we know how to deal with them.