All doctors have the duty to use a certain standard of care when treating their patients. When doctors fail to meet that standard of care and an injury occurs, the doctors should be held liable for their negligent actions and should compensate the patient for any resulting injuries or losses. Birth injuries are one of the most common types of injuries that occur in hospitals, and mistakes during the child birth process may cause devastating injury to the child, the mother, or both. If you or your child suffered an injury during child birth because a doctor acted negligently, you should contact the Philadelphia office of The Levin Firm Personal Injury Lawyers today to schedule a consultation with an experienced birth injury attorney.
Some common, but serious, mistakes during the child birth process include:
- Failing to properly monitor the baby’s heart rate and oxygen intake before, during, and after delivery;
- Failing to identify any umbilical cord issues;
- If any problems are identified, failing to act quickly enough to perform a caesarean section or otherwise try to rectify the issue;
- Failing to control a ruptured placenta or other blood loss of the mother after delivery;
- Failing to administer proper dosage or other necessary medical treatment to a premature or otherwise unstable child in the NICU.
Many of these mistakes can cause serious issues for the child and/or mother. For example, low oxygen during birth may cause conditions in the child such as cerebral palsy, which causes permanent physical disability in the child.
If you or your child was injured during the birthing process and you believe the doctor acted negligently, you may be able to recover compensation for your losses. Determining how much you deserve may be difficult, since it may seem difficult to put a value on the life-long effects your child may experience. However, there are methods of calculations that attorneys use to get you a fair and just settlement.