Ohio Birth Injury Results in $8.5 Million Settlement

The Myers baby is now three years old, but still suffers incredible birth injury side effects. The child is fed via a tube daily and according to the parents won’t even be able to take care of herself, let alone live a “normal” life. 

Medical negligence can impact an entire family. Who will care for the Myers baby once her parents are too old to do so? How much money will they have to put aside to ensure their child is properly cared for for life? How will this impact their financial stability, not to mention their relationship? These are questions many parents ask when facing the realities of a birth injury.

Proving the Birth Injury was Caused by Negligence

The Myers trial centered on the baby’s APGAR score, which is an assessment taken during the first few moments of a child’s life. It takes into consideration how well the child is doing from a medical perspective. Dr. Virginia Apgar was an anesthesiologist who developed the system to see how anesthesia can impact newborns. The appearance, pulse, grimace, activity and respiration (in other words, APGAR) are all considered when developing the score. 

The Myers baby wasn’t breathing at birth, but she had a pulse. This is a dangerous situation, but doesn’t necessarily need to lead to a lifetime of suffering. The nurse in attendance didn’t tell neonatal resuscitation experts in a timely manner, which led to the brain damage. The hospital also tried to use the APGAR score to show that they weren’t responsible, but that tactic didn’t work in their favor.

Another cause of a lower APGAR score can be placental infection, but that’s usually not the only reason. In the end, the jury found the hospital guilty of failing to detect an infection in the mother/baby, that the doctor misused medical equipment, that the doctor misread the fetal monitor, and that the doctor gave an incorrect dosage of medication to an infant. These issues were on top of low levels of oxygen to the brain, which the attending doctors failed to adjust in time. 

The Many Risks of Birth Injuries

Birth injuries from a legal perspective are just what they sound like — injuries at birth caused by doctors, healthcare providers, or the negligence of these professionals. Birth trauma can also be included in this category, which is the damage to the tissue or organs of a newborn child as long as medical providers or their negligence is the cause of the trauma. 

There are nearly endless ways a child might be injured during childbirth, and a filing a medical malpractice lawsuit may be the only way parents and children can get due compensation.

Did Your Child Suffer a Birth Injury?