Compassionate Attorneys Serving Families of Traumatic Birth Injuries in St. Louis
A traumatic birth injury can occur in a variety of situations, from regular birth to C-section complications. Today, we focus on the issue of injuries that occur during birth, and if they warrant a lawsuit for medical malpractice against the hospital, physician, or nursing staff.
Should You Sue?
A traumatic birth injury itself is not enough to request a claim for damages. Instead, you must show that someone was at fault for the traumatic injury and that it wasn’t something that occurred during the normal course of a delivery.
When someone suffers from a traumatic birth injury, the parents should speak with a personal injury attorney as soon as possible. Medical malpractice claims have strict timelines and complicated requirements for evidence. The faster an attorney is brought in, the more likely it is that a couple can retrieve the evidence necessary to prove their claim in court.
An attorney’s first task will be to look at the medical records; interview any witnesses present; and interview doctors, nursing staff, and other health care workers present. They may also have to hire experts to determine who was at fault for the injury.
To prove malpractice for the traumatic birth injury, you must show that the medical professionals’ responsible for your injury failed to provide the accepted standard of care that other professionals would have provided in a similar situation. This is not as easy as it sounds, which is why you need an attorney.
Assessing Damages in a Birth Injury Case
When a birth injury occurs, the damages usually correspond with the severity of the injury. If you have long-term injuries that will require ongoing medical treatments or even lifetime treatments, your damages would be higher than a person with a temporary injury from birth. Chronic pain, for example, warrants a higher settlement value than someone who has intermittent or temporary pain.
Sometimes, it is not just the standard of care issue that can make your traumatic birth injury claim valid. There are instances where hospitals were aggressively seeking new pregnant mothers to come deliver at their hospitals by using false claims in their advertisements. By doing so, they open the door to liability as well. If the hospital has violated the standard of care through poor advertisements, then they are also liable for the injury.
Speak with a Medical Malpractice Attorney
Whether it was you personally who was injured, or if your child was injured during birth, it is important to speak with a medical malpractice attorney regarding your injury. An attorney can assess the overall damages and help establish who was negligent and who can be held responsible in your particular case. Sometimes, you will have a claim against multiple parties (e.g., the hospital, a physician, and nurses), while other times it is against one provider.
Schedule a consultation today with the malpractice team at Carey, Danis & Lowe Attorneys at Law by calling 877-678-3400 or filling out our online contact form with your questions.
