Legal news reports that a 10 year-old girl has received a $9.87 million settlement in a birth injury case. According to reports, during the last several minutes of a dangerous labor and delivery, the child was in the wrong position. When she was born, she was delivered with the cord around her neck, requiring intubation. In this medical malpractice case, the family alleged that had these negligent mistakes not occurred, the child would not have suffered harm.
Among the allegations, that the hospital failed to have properly trained and competent medical staff onsite to handle her delivery and of failing to make sure a skilled obstetrician was available.
As the result of medical malpractice, the baby was born with a spinal cord injury that resulted in quadriplegia. Quadriplegia – or tetraplegia - is paralysis of all four limbs.
Spinal cord injuries can happen for a variety of reasons, including car accidents, medical malpractice and other serious personal injuries.
They can be particularly devastating when they occur during the labor and delivery process and lead to birth injuries.
Medical malpractice, where a doctor does not diagnose and/or quickly resolve labor and delivery situations or warning signs in a newborn, can cause paraplegia or quadriplegia. Failures in fetal heart tracing and other standard medical practices can create emergency situations where there is trauma or injury at birth.
For more information or if you believe that someone you love has suffered harm as the result of medical malpractice, please contact the experienced California birth injury lawyers at Bostwick & Peterson, LLP for an immediate consultation.