Caring Guidance For Your Family After A Birth Injury
The birth of a child should be a joyous occasion, but a medical error during the process of labor and delivery can change everything. As a parent, you want your child to be healthy and safe, and an injury can impact their life – and yours – in unexpected ways. It’s natural to be worried about how an injury will impact your child’s future. Will they have difficulty learning to walk? Will they have a lifelong disability that will affect their livelihood? How will you be able to support them?
We can help answer your questions – and more. At Nelson & Hammons, Attorneys At Law, we have been fighting for compensation on behalf of medical malpractice victims throughout Louisiana since 1977. As parents ourselves, we are compassionate attorneys who understand the anxieties and stress you’re feeling in this challenging situation. We are experienced in handling these cases and will walk you through the necessary steps to seek justice.
From our offices in Shreveport and Lafayette, we are lawyers who help recover damages for medical negligence and mistakes. Call today at 318-716-7329 to schedule a free consultation or email us at your convenience.
How Long Does It Take For Parents To Notice A Birth Injury?
Errors made during labor or delivery aren’t always immediately noticeable. In fact, you may already be back at home with your newborn and not notice that something is wrong until months later.
Some birth injuries take a while to appear, especially those involving joint damage or secondary medical complications. For example, your child’s joint damage might be considered a normal strain, but the persistence over time makes it apparent that something else is going on.
The sooner you’re able to recognize an injury, the sooner your child can get help. The best way for parents to do this is by being informed of the possible symptoms and signs of birth injuries. Pay close attention to your child’s development after birth and seek medical attention if you believe something is wrong.
Types Of Preventable Birth Injuries And Delivery Errors
When medical mistakes happen during the process of labor and delivery, they can result in permanent injuries. When you come to the realization that these injuries could have been prevented, it is devastating.
For a birth injury to be considered medical malpractice, there must be negligence on the part of the medical team. When birth injuries happen as a direct result of poor planning, risky techniques or other errors in the delivery room, there could potentially be a finding of negligence. Some of these oversights or errors include the following:
- Improperly using forceps or vacuum extractors
- Neglecting to monitor or react appropriately to fetal distress
- Poorly preparing for large newborns or umbilical cord issues
- Delaying the ordering of a cesarean section when needed
- Prescribing the wrong medications or treatments for infections
If there is evidence and proof of negligence, the attending doctors, nurses and hospital may potentially be liable for medical malpractice.
Long-Lasting Injuries From Birth
Preventable birth injuries can have long-term effects on the child and parents. While some birth injuries may be minor and the child may recover fully, others can impact the health of the child for the rest of their life. Birth injuries that lead to conditions like cerebral palsy, brain damage from lack of oxygen and Erb’s palsy are permanent.
The emotional, physical and financial impact of a permanent injury on a family can be devastating. Pursuing a medical malpractice claim cannot change the outcome of a birth injury, but it can help minimize the financial burden on your family and help your child get the medical care they need.
Birth Injury Support Can Be Lifelong
For many children, the injuries they sustain at birth can have lifelong ramifications. These injuries may affect many areas of their lives, including physical and mental health as well as education.
If you pursue a claim against a hospital or doctor for a birth injury, you can get compensation and support for the following:
- Surgeries and medical treatments
- Ongoing occupational and physical therapy
- Mobility aids
- Accessibility renovations to your home
- Educational support for your child if they experience developmental delays
- Compensation for your child’s future lost wages if they’re unable to work
- Assistance for ongoing in-home nursing care
- Mental health care for the parents
You deserve proper support to help care for your child’s needs after a birth injury. Compensation may also help support mothers who are physically injured by a birth injury, as many of these injuries also impact the mother in serious ways. We care about and understand your difficult situation and will help you file a malpractice claim.
Answering Your Birth Injury Questions
We understand that a birth injury can be a confusing time for you and your family, and we are here to help keep things as simple as possible for you. To help you get the answers to your questions, we have addressed some of the most common questions we receive below.
What types of injuries qualify as a medical malpractice birth injury?
Birth injuries are preventable harms caused by something that happened during the delivery. A birth injury can often occur when a health care provider fails to properly monitor the mother and baby, improper use of medications and improper care during and after delivery.
A birth injury can vary, including injuries such as brain damage, broken bones, spinal cord injuries, bruising and paralysis. However, a breach of the medical provider’s duty must have caused the injury.
Who can I sue?
As every case is different, we must look at your specific case to determine who to file a claim against. For birth injuries, you can often sue the doctor, nurse, pharmacist and the hospital or health care facility.
How long do I have to file a claim?
In Louisiana, you have one year from the date of the injury, or one year from the discovery of the injury, to file a medical malpractice claim.
What kind of compensation can I obtain?
In a birth injury claim, you can recover monetary damages for medical expenses and bills, pain and suffering, physical disfigurement or scarring, special education costs, and other related expenses.
Why should I use an attorney in a birth injury claim?
While an attorney is not required to file a birth injury claim in Louisiana, the assistance of an experienced lawyer can make a huge difference in the outcome of your case. We can provide valuable support and assistance, including gathering documents and evidence, expert witnesses, negotiations and fighting for you in court.
How many kids are impacted by birth injuries?
Approximately six to eight out of every 1,000 babies born in the United States suffer from birth injuries, which comes out to roughly 28,000 newborns every year who suffer some kind of birth injury.
What’s the difference between a birth injury and a birth defect?
A birth injury typically occurs as a result of complications during labor and delivery and is often preventable. Injuries can result from any number of mistakes during the delivery process. Birth defects, conversely, are usually the result of a genetic issue, environmental impact or other unknown factor – all of which are unrelated to the delivery process.
How does birth trauma affect kids?
Birth trauma can have various short- and long-term effects on a child. Physically, it can lead to conditions such as cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy or brain damage. Most injuries can impact a child’s mobility, mental development or other element of their health. Additionally, the consequences of these injuries can also result in emotional and psychological trauma as the child grows up.
What are the most common birth injuries?
The most common birth injuries include:
- Brachial plexus injuries (e.g., Erb’s palsy): Damage to the nervous system that communicates to the shoulder, arm and hand
- Fractures (commonly, clavicle fractures): Breaks in the bones, often occurring in the collarbone during birth
- Cephalohematoma: A collection of blood between a baby’s scalp and the skull bone
- Caput succedaneum: Severe swelling of the soft tissues of the scalp
- Perinatal asphyxia: Lack of oxygen to the brain around the time of birth
No matter what kind of injury your child experienced, we are prepared to help you hold the liable party accountable for their actions.
Free Consultations From Louisiana Birth Injury Attorneys
If you believe that your child was injured during the delivery process or as a result of negligence from your medical team, then contact us at 318-716-7329 or send an email through our website to schedule your free case evaluation.
We are birth injury attorneys who represent clients throughout Shreveport and Lafayette. Strict filing deadlines and time limits apply when pursuing medical malpractice cases in our state of Louisiana.