Chicago Medical Malpractice Case a Textbook Example of Birth Injury

Posted on July 18, 2016 by Shapiro Law Group

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Birth injuries can have devastating costs for children and their families, both emotional and financial. Even worse, these emotional and medical costs are often preventable. We can use a recent medical malpractice case to explore the consequences of birth injuries further.

A Chicago mother and her child were awarded $53 million from a medical malpractice lawsuit. The child mentioned in the lawsuit sustained a severe brain injury after hospital staff made more than 20 mistakes during the delivery process.

Now 12 years old, the boy lives with cerebral palsy and is incapable of taking care of himself. The boy’s mother must feed him, carry him up and down the stairs and help him go to the bathroom. Instead of enjoying an active childhood, the boy is confined to a wheelchair. Try to imagine being this boy’s mother for a moment. Picture the medical and emotional costs associated with caring for a child with severe cerebral palsy while knowing that it was preventable!

The lawsuit suggests hospital staff did not monitor the newborn and failed to carry out a timely cesarean section after detecting abnormal heart rate patterns. Heart rate patterns suggested the baby was suffering hypoxia, a condition where the blood does not receive enough oxygen.

For the last 12 years, the hospital has refused to admit responsibility or offer an apology. Does this sound familiar? In fact, it is a topic we covered on last week’s blog.

Do You Have a Medical Malpractice Case?

There are several ways hospital staff can cause babies to develop cerebral palsy during and after delivery. For example, a disruption in the brain’s blood supply, a lack of oxygen during delivery and blunt force trauma can all cause cerebral palsy.

Hospital staff have a duty to provide an acceptable standard of care to both mothers and their newborns. When medical wrongdoing occurs, the consequences can last a lifetime.

The Florida medical malpractice attorneys at Shapiro Law Group will hold hospitals accountable for injuring patients.

Tags: Pregnancy

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