Personal Injury Lawyer
Birth injuries can happen due to unfortunate circumstances that no one could have prepared for, but in other situations it was a doctor or other medical staff member who had committed a major error. Mistakes made by a healthcare provider do happen, and parents may have the option to pursue legal action with help from an attorney. A legal professional with experience handling sensitive cases like yours, can help you understand your rights while fighting to see that justice is found for the devastation your family has been through.
Common Birth Injuries
Sadly, it is estimated that around 5 in every 1,000 babies born in hospitals across the United States, suffer from some kind of birth injury. During your consultation with an attorney, they may ask to see any documentation related to the delivery and potential evidence that shows who was at-fault. The more proof they have that links the birth injury to a medical mistake, the more likely you are to get the outcome you are looking for in the lawsuit. The most common birth injuries include the following:
- Erb’s Palsy
- Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension
- Anoxia
- Wrongful death
- Bone fractures
- Skull fractures
- Lacerations
- Bruising
- Brain damage
- Hypoxia
- Cephalohematoma
- Perinatal asphyxia
- Facial paralysis
- Spinal cord damage
- Caput succedaneum
Resist the Urge to File a Complaint
Parents who are enduring pure agony over their baby sustaining a birth injury, may be filled with anger and want to take action quickly. One of the first ideas may be to contact the hospital directly to file a complaint. While this may sound like a reliable option, we may actually suggest against doing so. The reason is that large medical facilities may want to do everything within their power to protect against paying out in a lawsuit. The doctor may be worried that a lawsuit will impact his or her ability to continue practicing medicine, and may attempt to elude responsibility at all costs.
Financial Compensation
While there isn’t an amount of money that can take back the error, an attorney can help you obtain justice by holding the person at-fault accountable for his or her actions. All birth injury cases are different, so it can be challenging to estimate a potential monetary award for every person without a thorough consultation. In general, parents who win a birth injury lawsuit can be entitled to receiving compensation for:
- Rehabilitation and therapy
- Costs for in-home care or special education
- Lost wages from missing work to care for injured infant
- Pain and trauma suffered by infant due to injuries
- Emotional hardship
- Punitive damages
- Medical care costs associated with infant injuries (past, present, and future expenses)
We encourage parents to contact us for a no-obligation consultation with a personal injury lawyer. They cannot imagine the emotional rollercoaster you may be going through, and will do what they can to help you recover.
