No one expects or can prepare you for your child suffering a birth injury. Families entrust their unborn child’s care to doctors and other medical providers to safely monitor and care for the baby and mom during pregnancy through delivery. Sadly, accidents, mistakes, and negligent errors happen, that can result in devastating injuries and consequences. Our compassionate and skilled birth injuries lawyer is available to help.
WHAT IS A BIRTH INJURY?
When a baby is injured due to negligence in the pregnancy or birthing process, parents are advised to consult a birth injury attorney to determine how that baby can be helped through a medical malpractice claim.
Birth injuries may occur as a result of malpractice at any stage of pregnancy, birth, or an infant’s care after birth. Obstetricians, obstetrical nurses, medical technicians, and hospital personnel are responsible for following accepted standards of care throughout prenatal care, labor, delivery, and neonatal care.
At the Honolulu law offices of Cronin, Fried, Sekiya, Kekina & Fairbanks, we will take the time necessary to talk over the facts and circumstances of your baby’s birth injury as you understand them.
WHAT ARE THE COMMON CAUSES OF BIRTH INJURIES?
Many different factors and circumstances can cause birth injuries. Many of them are preventable with adequate prenatal and childbirth care.
Some common causes of birth injuries include the following:
- Obstetrician or midwife errors. Your obstetrician (OB) is responsible for prenatal monitoring, care, and birth during pregnancy. Failure to provide proper monitoring during pregnancy, delaying a necessary C-section, failing to perform an essential C-section, using excessive force during delivery, and improperly using forceps or vacuums during delivery can result in permanent injury.
- Failure to diagnose and treat pregnancy complications. Conditions can arise during pregnancy, and often, they can be addressed and treated with little complication or negative consequences. However, if a physician fails to diagnose or treat the condition, it can lead to an increased risk of birth injuries or defects.
- Uterine rupture. Less common than other causes are uterine ruptures. A uterine rupture during labor and delivery can not only be dangerous for the mother but potentially cause birth injuries for the baby.
- Oxygen deprivation. A lack of oxygen supply to the baby can result in some of the worst birth injuries to the baby and can occur for many reasons, including prolonged labor, separated placenta, a breech position, low blood pressure or oxygen level in the mother, or an umbilical cord tightly wrapped around the baby’s neck. If the baby is deprived of oxygen for a length of time, it can cause permanent brain damage and serious injuries.
- Medication errors. Many medications can have serious adverse consequences for an unborn child. If a doctor or healthcare professional administers the wrong medication or incorrect dose during pregnancy, it can lead to birth defects and injuries.
- Infections. While infections themselves are usually not caused by the doctor, midwife, or nurse, if the provider fails to recognize the infection and treat it quickly and effectively, it can lead to birth injuries. Sometimes infections may be passed from mother to baby during pregnancy which makes treatment of maternal infections very important.
There are dozens of causes of birth injuries, and this list is just a tiny portion of what can lead to a birth injury. If you believe your doctor or provider caused your child’s disability or condition, it is essential to consult with a Honolulu birth injury lawyer.
TYPES OF BIRTH INJURIES: EXAMPLES
Birth injuries can be physical and neurological. Some are minor and temporary, while others will have permanent lifelong consequences.
CEREBRAL PALSY
One of the most common birth injuries is cerebral palsy, which can encompass a wide array of disabilities and a spectrum of severity. Generally, it affects your child’s movement and coordination. Symptoms can be mild or severe and may require daily medical and physical assistance for your child, including using a wheelchair.
HYPOXIC-ISCHEMIC ENCEPHALOPATHY (HIE)
A type of brain damage as a result of oxygen deprivation to the baby’s brain during childbirth. HIE affects the central nervous system, and babies born with it may have neurological or developmental problems.
TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY (TBI)
The use of excessive force or misuse of instruments, such as a vacuum or forceps, can cause a TBI to the baby’s brain. If anything with significant force strikes the baby’s head during delivery or the baby is carelessly dropped, it can result in a TBI. Other birth injuries include:
- Cephalopelvic disproportion,
- Erb’s palsy, and
- Fractures.
Remember, this list is not exhaustive, and the degree of severity of any of these injuries can vary drastically. If you are concerned with your child’s health, well-being, and development after birth, you should seek immediate medical attention from your child’s pediatrician for prompt diagnosis and treatment. Upon examination, the pediatrician may refer you to additional specialists and therapists. At Cronin, Fried, Sekiya, Kekina & Fairbanks, our birth injury justice lawyers will work with your child’s care team to create a strong compensation claim.
READY TO ANSWER QUESTIONS FOR YOU
When you’ve decided it’s time to turn to an attorney over your birth injury matter, you will have many questions.
PROVING A BIRTH INJURY
Proving your child’s birth injury as the result of medical malpractice can be more complicated than you might think. Not all errors and injuries are medical malpractice. Mistakes and unfortunate events happen, but it does not necessarily mean the doctor was negligent in providing care.
For a successful medical malpractice claim, you must prove:
- A doctor-patient relationship and duty of care existed;
- The doctor deviated from acceptable standards of care and breached their duty;
- The doctor’s breach caused your baby’s birth injury and harm; and
- The injury caused compensable damages.
A doctor, midwife, or other medical professional involved in your prenatal care and childbirth has a legal duty to perform their job according to the accepted standards of care. If they deviate from these standards, they may be liable for medical malpractice.
HOW IS BIRTH INJURY COMPENSATION CALCULATED?
Birth injury compensation looks at many factors when calculating a final amount. They will look at the child’s:
- Quality of life,
- Possible future needs,
- Travel expenses,
- Home modification and renovation expenses,
- Home care,
- Past and future medical expenses,
- Pain and suffering,
- Permanent disfigurement,
- Emotional and mental anguish, and
- Loss of enjoyment of life.
It is even possible your lost earnings from leaving a job to take care of your child may be part of the calculation. But that is a discussion for you and your attorney.
HOW LONG DO I HAVE TO BRING A BIRTH INJURY LAWSUIT IN HAWAII?
A statute of limitations is the timeframe for initiating a legal proceeding. Most personal injury and medical malpractice claims have a straightforward statute of limitations. However, in birth injuries, the deadline for filing a malpractice lawsuit will depend on who is filing the claim and when the injury is discovered.
In some cases, your child may not be diagnosed with a birth injury until much later on. Under those circumstances, the clock may begin to run at the time of discovery rather than at birth.
I. Minor Claims – Children Under 10
A minor under 10 has 6 years from the date of the negligent conduct or by the minor’s 10th birthday, whichever allows for more time, to initiate a lawsuit. There are exceptions to these general rules and situations in which the statute can be tolled or paused. For example, suppose a parent or party acting on behalf of the injured minor commits fraud, collusion, or gross negligence or fails to bring an action on their behalf. In that case, the statute of limitations may be tolled so the minor has legal recourse to pursue their claim.
II. Parental Claims
As the parent of the injured child, you have two years after the injury is discovered or reasonably should have been discovered, but in any event, not more than six years after the injury occurred, to file a malpractice lawsuit for birth injuries your child suffered.
Practically speaking, initiating a claim as soon as possible is always best to preserve memories, witnesses and records, to ensure the injured child’s rights are protected. An experienced Honolulu birth injury attorney can help assess your case and determine your filing deadline.
GET LEGAL ASSISTANCE FROM A PROMINENT PERSONAL INJURY LAW FIRM IN HAWAII
Contact us to speak with a Hawaii birth injury attorney during a free initial consultation. We will take the time necessary to talk over the facts and circumstances of your baby’s birth injury as you understand them.
Attorney Rick Fried was the lead counsel in a birth injury lawsuit that resulted in a record $16.5 million verdict against the U.S. Army-run Tripler Medical Center in Honolulu in 2006. A baby born there in 2005 suffered irreparable brain damage after being given carbon dioxide rather than oxygen immediately following his otherwise normal cesarean birth. Our office obtained a $9.4 million court judgment for birth injuries again in 2007. We have obtained many additional out-of-court settlements as well.
Hiring a law firm with a long track record of success in obtaining verdicts and settlements provides hope for clients who have suffered serious losses because of the negligence of doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals. We advocate vigorously on behalf of families with babies who have suffered brain damage caused by preventable hypoxia and other causes during pregnancy, labor, or delivery.
To schedule a free consultation to discuss your infant trauma injury, send us an email or call us locally at 808-524-1433. If you don’t win financial compensation, you pay nothing.