The delivery process can cause various injuries and complications for newborns. Severe birth injuries can have long-term, catastrophic consequences for a newborn’s life. When those injuries are the result of a medical provider’s carelessness or negligence, the newborn’s family can hold the medical provider accountable for the tragedy they have endured.
Catastrophic Traumatic Birth Injuries Explained
A catastrophic birth injury refers to physical trauma or complications suffered by a newborn during delivery that cause lifelong disabilities or impairments for the child. Children who suffer catastrophic birth injuries often require lifelong medical treatment, care and rehabilitation, personal care, and specialized education to help them with daily living and enable them to overcome limitations imposed by their birth injury.
Common Types of Catastrophic Birth Injuries
Some of the most common examples of catastrophic traumatic birth injuries include the following:
- Cerebral palsy
- Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE)
- Spinal cord injuries
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Amputation
- Sepsis
- Shoulder dystocia/brachial plexus injury
Some birth injuries, especially those involving physical damage, have immediate signs or symptoms. However, many birth injuries do not become apparent to parents and doctors for months after birth, until infants and toddlers begin falling behind on developmental milestones.
When It Becomes a Medical Malpractice Case
Not every birth injury will lead to a medical malpractice claim. Complications can occur during delivery despite the medical team doing everything expected of them under the standard of care. However, a family may have a medical malpractice case if a birth injury occurred due to a medical provider’s negligence during delivery.
A healthcare professional commits medical negligence when they make decisions or render treatment that does not comply with the applicable standard of care. These decisions and actions are not what other healthcare providers of similar training and experience would take in similar circumstances. In most cases, families will need medical specialist experts familiar with birth injuries to review medical records and imaging to determine whether a newborn’s birth injury occurred due to a healthcare provider’s deviation from the standard of care.
Financial Compensation for Catastrophic Birth Injuries
When a catastrophic birth injury occurs because of medical malpractice, families may have the right to seek compensation for their own and their child’s current and future losses. Examples of things that a family might seek financial recovery for in a birth injury claim include the following:
- The child’s medical expenses, including past treatment for the injury or complication, and future anticipated medical needs
- Long-term disability care and support services, such as home health care or special education services
- Home renovations to install disability accommodations
- Assistive equipment, such as wheelchairs and text-to-speech devices
- Loss of earning capacity to recover for the inability to work productively
How a Medical Malpractice Lawyer Can Help
A medical malpractice attorney can help your family pursue a birth injury claim by doing the following:
- Investigating the case and recovering evidence of healthcare providers’ negligence
- Working with specialized medical experts to develop a compelling case to prove healthcare providers’ liability for your child’s catastrophic birth injury
- Developing a life care plan with medical damage experts to recover all costs and expenses to be incurred in your child’s lifetime
- Filing a medical malpractice complaint and trying a court case against the negligent healthcare providers
For life’s toughest trials, turn to the experienced and reputable lawyers at Eisenberg Winkler Jeck Schwartz Schoenhaus & Sherry, P.C. Contact us today for a free consultation with a catastrophic birth injury attorney to learn more about your family’s legal options for seeking accountability and compensation.
