Birth injuries and infant deaths profoundly impact families. Many birth injuries result in life-long disabilities that require extensive, ongoing medical and rehabilitative care. When the negligence of a medical professional causes birth injuries, parents may have a right to pursue compensation for their child’s injuries.
The Long Island birth injury attorneys at Dell & Dean, PLLC offer parents of children who’ve suffered birth injuries with sensitive and compassionate legal representation. We have a proven track record of holding negligent medical professionals accountable through medical malpractice lawsuits. If you’d like to learn more about your legal options and how we can fight for you, contact Dell & Dean, PLLC to schedule a complimentary, no-obligation consultation.
Holding Medical Professionals Accountable for Birth Injuries
Normally, the birth of a baby is a joyous time for a family. Unfortunately, although medical advances have made childbirth safer than it used to be, the birth process can still be risky. It’s crucial that doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals use reasonable care to avoid errors that could have lifelong consequences for the newborn and the mother. When medical professionals engage in negligence or recklessness, errors can occur that cause serious birth injuries, including cerebral palsy, hypoxia, and other brain injuries.
Examples of Negligence in Birth Injury Cases
If your child has suffered a birth injury due to medical negligence, it’s important that you discuss your case with an attorney as soon as possible. You may have a legal claim for compensation through a medical malpractice lawsuit. Even if the negligence that caused your victim’s injuries seems obvious, you’ll benefit from working with a skilled attorney. The defendant or defendants may try to claim that the complications during the birth process were unavoidable.
Speaking to a birth injury attorney will allow your attorney to begin investigating and gathering evidence that the medical staff in your case failed to meet professional standards. The attorneys at Dell & Dean, PLLC handle a wide range of birth injury cases, including those involving the following types of negligence:
- Doctors failed to notice that the baby’s medical condition had changed
- Failure to diagnose or treat a trapped umbilical cord, uterine rupture, infections of the baby or mother, placental previa, or placental abruption
- Lack of adequate prenatal testing
- Not performing necessary tests during pregnancy that could have detected a potential problem earlier
- Not referring a high-risk mother to other medical specialists during her pregnancy
- Incorrectly using Pitocin, a medication that induces labor
- Medical errors involving VBAC delivery
- Insufficient fetal monitoring
- Brain injuries leading to cerebral palsy
- Erb’s palsy
- Post-birth injuries to the baby and mother
When birth injuries result in long-term care, families can struggle to pay medical bills, especially when parents cannot return to work. Pursuing a medical malpractice lawsuit can help you recover compensation for all the damages you’ve sustained. Birth injuries can be highly complex, and every situation is different. The attorneys at Dell & Dean, PLLC will provide you with the legal counsel you need to make informed decisions about your case.
Birth Injuries Involving the Brain
Any type of preventable birth injury can cause long-term consequences for the child. Medical conditions that affect the brain or muscles have the potential to be especially devastating. Brain injuries have the greatest potential to negatively affect the child’s course of growth and development, resulting in disabilities that remain throughout his or her life. For example, oxygen deprivation caused by hypoxia is a common cause of brain damage at birth that can occur due to birth asphyxia, anoxia, or perinatal asphyxia.
Oxygen deprivation at birth can cause hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, meaning the brain experiences oxygen starvation. During a brain hemorrhage, excessive blood flows into the brain, causing permanent loss of some of its functions, which can cause seizures or cerebral palsy. Jaundice can also cause brain-related birth injuries when medical staff doesn’t treat the condition promptly and effectively.
Birth Injuries Resulting in Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral palsy is one of the most common types of birth injuries. Oxygen deprivation and infection of stroke can result in cerebral palsy. Additionally, when the mother has an infection, oxygen deprivation can occur. Although cerebral palsy affects a child’s body movements, the condition is caused by a brain injury.
The symptoms of cerebral palsy range from mild to severe. Children with cerebral palsy generally need physical and occupational therapy. In severe cases, a child may need around-the-clock care. In some cases, the cause of cerebral palsy is unknown. However, the medical errors that cause oxygen deprivation and cerebral palsy are often caused by medical errors. Some of the most common types of medical errors that cause cerebral palsy include the following:
- Failure to detect and treat the mother’s infection
- Unnecessary delay in performing a Cesarean section
- Failure to detect and promptly treat prolapse of the umbilical cord
- Failure to monitor signs of fetal distress and respond appropriately
- Improper use of forceps, suction, and other tools to facilitate the birth
Fighting for Compensation and Justice for Families
The attorneys at Dell & Dean, PLLC help families determine whether their doctor or another medical professional engaged in malpractice. When a healthcare provider, hospital, or another party is at fault for your child’s injuries, we will pursue a lawsuit for the full amount of compensation you need and deserve.
Compensation can cover the cost of your child’s future medical care. As a plaintiff, you can also recover compensation for the pain, suffering, and other financial and emotional losses you’ve suffered due to medical negligence. Recovering compensation can help you and your family ensure your child receives the medical care he or she needs while bringing a sense of closure and justice to a painful chapter in your life.
Contact Our Experienced Long Island Birth Injury Attorneys
If your baby suffered a birth injury due to a medical professional’s negligence, the attorneys at Dell & Dean, PLLC are prepared to fight for you. Contact Dell & Dean, PLLC to schedule a free case evaluation and discuss your case with a skilled attorney.
