Medical Negligence and Birth Injuries: Know Your Rights
According to the Birth Injury Justice Center, approximately every 7 out of 1,000 infants are born with birth-related injuries. Many of these instances could have been prevented if the medical experts involved met their standard of care. If you or your child suffered a preventable injury because of a medical error before, during, or after childbirth, pursuing legal action can help you obtain the justice and compensation you deserve.
Working with expert medical malpractice attorneys is crucial to determine if you have grounds for a birth injury case. In this post, we will discuss common birth injuries caused by medical negligence and examine how your attorney can aid you in your case.
Understanding Birth Injuries
The Cerebral Palsy Guides states that “birth injuries generally happen when the child is being born. Common injuries that occur during childbirth include physical head trauma and brain bleeds.” It is important to note that genetics do not play a role in these injuries, and many infants will develop normally until the injury happens.
Nolo, The Legal Encyclopedia states that medical malpractice during labor and delivery can cause “acute, sometimes life-threatening conditions that appear during labor and delivery or in the hours or days immediately before or after delivery,” leading to prenatal asphyxia, maternal bleeding, and brachial plexus injury.
Our medical malpractice attorneys have worked on and continue to help clients on many birth injury cases that include:
- Cerebral Palsy
- Erb’s Palsy
- Brain Injuries
- Paralysis
- Chemical Birth Defects
- Spinal Cord Injury
Certain birth injuries may heal over time, while others may lead to long-term or permanent disabilities. Your attorney will examine all components of your case to determine the proper amount of compensation you need to cover economic and non-economic damages.
Medical Negligence That Causes Birth Injury
Medical professionals may commit negligence in a variety of ways that can lead to complications during birth; these can include but are not limited to the following:
- Failing to detect any distress relating to the infant's heartbeat
- Failing to perform a medically necessary C-section
- Failing to inform the mother of the risks involved with the use of forceps or vacuum delivery
- Using excessive force on the baby when they exit the birth canal.
Medical professionals are required to uphold a high standard of care by possessing a high level of knowledge and skill in their field. Upholding this standard is integral to fulfilling the duty of care expected in the medical domain. If they fail to follow through with these best practices and cause harm to their patient, they must be held responsible for their actions.
Proving Causation In A Birth Injury Case
Developing a birth injury claim requires extensive preparation from an expert medical malpractice attorney. The attorney must also thoroughly investigate the evidence supporting its most crucial elements, specifically the causation.
In addition to drawing from the insight of our attorneys and medical experts, our team pays close attention to fetal heart rate monitoring tools. These tools provide both a window into a fetus's well-being during labor and delivery and recorded evidence that offers a retrospective analysis of what could have possibly gone wrong.
California’s Top Birth Injury Attorneys
The emotional and financial turmoil of a birth injury case is devastating for the loved ones involved. While they cannot undo what has happened, working with an attorney can help alleviate some of the anguish you have experienced. The California medical malpractice attorneys at Bostwick & Peterson have decades of litigation experience with birth injury-related cases that have resulted in millions of dollars in recovery for the families. As a nationally recognized birth injury law firm, we understand what it takes to get you the compensation you deserve.
If you are ready to seek justice for what you have endured, contact us for a free case consultation today.