Learn the most common responsible parties for birth injuries.
If your child suffered a birth injury, you may have grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit. The two most likely responsible parties commonly held financially liable for causing birth injuries are the attending physician during the delivery and the medical facility where the delivery took place. One or both of these parties may be held financially liable for your child’s birth injury. You could collect compensation for your economic and non-economic losses.
You should speak with a birth injury lawyer right away about your case. Every state has a statute of limitations as well as various other deadlines and restrictions on filing suit. You do not want to let these pass and thus be barred from seeking compensation.
The Most Common Liable Parties in a Birth Injury Medical Malpractice Case
After a birth injury, the main question that will determine if you have grounds for a medical malpractice case is this: Was the injury unavoidable, or could it have been prevented if you had received better care during childbirth?
The fact is, some birth injuries are unavoidable. Something happens during childbirth that no reasonable person could foresee, and once it happens, the damage is done, and it is too late to prevent the injury from occurring.
Other times, though, a birth injury happens because the attending physician or another staff member makes a mistake. In these situations, the question becomes whether the mistake happened because of negligence. If so, the person who made the mistake could be liable, as could their employer.
The Attending Physician
When a birth injury happens, the attending physician is often the first person zeroed in on when the victim’s family begins to consider a medical malpractice lawsuit. After all, the physician was there and in charge of the delivery. It stands to reason that they should answer for anything that went wrong in the process.
To hold a doctor liable for a birth injury, we must be able to show four things:
- The doctor had a duty of care to the patient, as evidenced by an active doctor-patient relationship.
- The doctor failed to uphold their duty of care, as evidenced by the fact that a reasonable person in the same situation would have been more likely than not to take a different course of action and thus prevent the injury.
- The patient or the patient’s child suffered injury because of the doctor’s failure to uphold their duty.
- The patient or patient’s child incurred damages due to the injury.
The Medical Facility
If it is determined that your doctor or another member of the medical staff present for the delivery was responsible for your child’s birth injury, that person’s employer might have vicarious liability for the actions of its employee on the job. In other words, we might be able to pursue not just the doctor (or staff member) for compensation but also the medical facility.
Other Medical Staff Members
Your doctor is not the only medical provider who might have caused or contributed to your child’s injury. There are also nurses, physician assistants, and other staff members. Your attorney should take a look at everyone present for the birth to determine who did what and who might share in the liability.
How Much Compensation You Can Earn in a Birth Injury Medical Malpractice Case
Many factors play a role in how much compensation you can recover for your child’s birth injury. You should speak with a lawyer to discuss your case. A lawyer can review the evidence and let you know what to expect. Depending on the specifics of your situation, you might be eligible to collect money to pay for some or all of the following:
- Your child’s medical expenses, including hospitalizations, surgeries, doctor visits, and medications
- Physical and occupational therapy for your child
- Home modifications to accommodate your child’s injury-related disability
- Costs of tutoring or special education if your child has a learning or cognitive disability from the injury
- Additional money to compensate you and your child for pain and suffering, emotional anguish, and loss of enjoyment of life
Call 888-526-8947 Today for a Free Case Evaluation With a Birth Injury Lawyer From Newsome | Melton
At Newsome | Melton, our dedicated attorneys have a strong track record of recovering compensation for families with children injured during childbirth. We will fight aggressively for you.
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