A few moments in life can be as joyous as giving birth to a baby. But when your baby is harmed during delivery and labor, the moment might change into dismay or shock. The baby might need medical and long-term care, which may lead to medical malpractice and birth injuries.
If this happens, you might be eligible to take some legal steps against the nurse, doctor, and other parties responsible.
Although the compensation you get through a verdict or settlement may not undo what really happened, it will offer you the means of caring for your baby.
So if any of the following causes of a birth injury involve medical malpractice, you might want to ensure you hire the right attorney:
1. Use of Forceps Improperly
Some doctors or nurses use forceps when helping a mother deliver a baby. These devices are used to control the movement of a child’s head faster.
But doctors might apply a lot of pressure on a child’s health, resulting in permanent brain damage. Improper utilization of these devices may also lead to birth injuries, like extensive bruising and nerve damage.
2. Drug-Related Injury
Medications are a common cause of birth injuries. For instance, most women get prescribed drugs like Pitocin to induce labor. However, this medication may lead to a strong contraction, which is difficult for mothers to manage.
That, in turn, might put more pressure or stress on the uterus’s muscles, increasing the risk of rapture, which may harm both the child and the mother.
Medical experts and doctors must be aware of the medications mothers are taking so as to monitor all the potential side effects.
3. Inadequate Parental Care
This greatly contributes to risks associated with birth injuries. The right medical care must begin immediately a woman realizes she is pregnant.
During this time, the doctor needs to assess the mother regularly and take the necessary precautions so as to minimize the risks related to the mother, including:
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Infections
- Insufficient folic acid or iron
- Low blood pressure
- A small stature
- Obesity or heavyweight
- Gestational diabetes
4. Cerebral Palsy
This happens as a result of brain injuries during, before, or immediately after the baby is delivered. There are a lot of things that may cause cerebral palsy.
This includes a blow to the child’s head, premature birth, oxygen deprivation, and maternal infection during delivery. It also affects children differently, and it’s not curable.
5. Delayed Delivery
Birth injuries might happen if doctors fail to deliver a child at a reasonable time. Prolonged labor usually places children at high risk.
When doctors fail to take the necessary steps so as to speed up the entire process or recognize non-productive labor, permanent injuries might happen to both the mother and the baby alike.
Some of the steps doctors need to take include ordering emergency CS (cesarean section) or medical-induced labor.
Final Touches!
You might manage to file birth injury negligence claims when you believe a doctor, nurse, or other medical expert caused preventable damages during the delivery process.
Filing birth injury cases help prevent similar cases like these from taking place. Plus, your claim might maintain a high standard of care among medical communities.
