Childbirth is often performed in a medical environment, with the mother and child surrounded by medical professionals who may intervene and assist if anything becomes difficult or hazardous. Pittsburgh Personal Injury Lawyers here provide you with all that you need to know about nursing negligence, birth injuries, and the legal help you can get from birth injury lawyers in Pittsburgh.
Though it is a completely natural procedure, it may be dangerous, which is why nearly all contemporary births take place in a hospital or birthing facility. After the physician’s job is completed, most of the care is in the control of educated and competent nurses. Nevertheless, there are instances when a nurse may make a mistake that causes significant damage to the mother or the baby.
When a preventable error happens, particularly when it affects a newborn, there are no excuses. Unfortunately, there are certain frequent situations in which a nurse’s carelessness may result in what is known as birth injuries. These are not like birth malformations, which occur very immediately after conception. Birth injuries may range from mild to serious and are often caused by mistakes on the part of a nurse or other medical practitioner.
How Is It Possible for a Nurse to Be Negligent?
While doctors are in charge of a lot more throughout the delivery process and are expected to identify problems before they occur, nurses also have many specific duties allocated to them. For example, nurses are in charge of caring for newborns, and they must learn how to lift and treat babies or risk injuring them appropriately.
Nurses are also responsible for caring for moms, and they must often give them the medicines they need before and after delivery. Unfortunately, a nurse may give too much of the recommended medication, which increases the risk of birth damage. Both Oxytocin and Pitocin, which are used to accelerate birth, are harmful to the unborn fetus. If a nurse administers too much of any medication, this is also considered carelessness.
How Does Negligence in Labor and Delivery Cause Birth Injuries?
Obstetric care professionals, including physicians, midwives, and nurses, should recognize when a baby is in danger of harm. A variety of tests, methods, and approaches may be employed to identify issues. Birth injuries may occur when medical practitioners fail to utilize the instruments at their disposal effectively – or at all – and overlook or disregard warning signals.
Some of the most frequent grounds for suing an ob-gyn include failures to:
- Determine whether the baby is in an unusual position, if there is an issue with the placenta, or if there is a problem with the umbilical cord
- Recognize the mother’s emergence of high blood pressure or other problems affecting the baby’s health.
- Carry out a timely cesarean section (C-section)
- Use a suction or forceps equipment correctly.
- Administer medicine in safe amounts
- Keep a close eye on the baby’s health and look for any signs of oxygen deprivation, bleeding, or other problems.
- Detect and treat infections, particularly those that develop after delivery, as soon as possible.
When a midwife supervises labor or delivery, the risk of birth injury increases. If a problem develops and a doctor is required to identify and treat it, the wait alone may result in long-term damage. When there is obstetrical negligence, it may result in injuries such as:
- Neonatal death or stillbirth
- Neonatal encephalopathy (a kind of encephalopathy that occurs in newborns ).
- Cerebral palsy
How Can You File a Lawsuit for a Birth Injury?
Even little errors in childbirth may have long-term consequences. In other instances, the damage may not be detected until the infant is old enough to exhibit symptoms such as failing to reach “normal milestones” in physical or intellectual growth. Suppose you have a new kid and suspect a birth injury. In that case, you should contact an experienced Pittsburgh birth injury lawyer who can examine your case facts and confer with medical specialists.
The following are the most common problems in a birth injury medical malpractice claim:
- Whether obstetrical care providers followed recognized medical procedures.
- Whether you or your kid were harmed as a result of this breach of the standard of care.
- The amount of physical, emotional, and financial damage experienced by you or your child due to the obstetric care provider’s carelessness.
In the claim, over than one medical practitioner may be held responsible. Birth injuries may be legally attributed to a doctor, midwife, nurse, or the hospital itself.
In reality, a case may include two distinct lawsuits: one on behalf of the kid and one on the parents’ account. For example, parents may claim reimbursement for money spent on treating a child’s birth damage. However, future medical expenditures would be incurred in the child’s name.
The law is a bit more complex when it comes to stillbirths or miscarriages. A child born alive who subsequently dies may target a wrongful death lawsuit, with the parents entitled to compensation.
Wrongful conception or birth are two of the most complicated instances of obstetrical malpractice. Parents may be able to seek compensation if a birth control process failed due to medical negligence or if a healthcare professional failed to identify a pregnancy within the time limits during which termination of a pregnancy would have been allowed – but only if the child was born with complications.
Usually, a kid has no right to sue just by being born. The parents are not entitled to compensation for the usual expenses of raising a healthy kid. On the other hand, the expenses above what it would cost to raise a healthy kid may be reimbursed if medical negligence caused the conception/birth and the baby was born with defects.
Birth Injuries Compensation:
If you think your kid suffered a birth injury due to medical malpractice, you may be entitled to financial compensation.
Birth negligence compensation may assist your family in paying for your child’s treatment, allowing them to live a self-sufficient life. Dealing with a medical malpractice or birth injury attorney at a reputable legal company can assist your family in obtaining compensation.
If you believe that your child has suffered from a birth injury and are looking for a professional, experienced law firm or attorneys to guide you, birth injury lawyers in Pittsburgh can help you. You can get in touch with us for a free consultation.
