In Canada, a Winnipeg mother filed a birth injury malpractice lawsuit against the doctors and nurses at St. Boniface General Hospital. The mother claims that as a direct result of the medical staff’s negligent decisions, she suffered an unnecessarily long labor and caused her child to born with permanent disability.

Interestingly enough, the plaintiff is a licensed practical nurse and is very familiar with birthing protocol and possible injuries. According to the birth injury lawsuit, the mother suffered a particularly difficult labor that resulted in a C-section, which was allegedly caused by the delays in decision made by the doctors and nurses on staff at the time.

Her labor began at 12:30 p.m. on April 26, 2014, where the nurse on site raised concerning questions regarding fetal movement. She reportedly waited over an hour to consult a doctor or resident. At 2:00 p.m., a doctor and resident finally looked over the patient and her labor, wherein they shared the same concerns as the nurse, mentioning the lack of activity on the fetal heart monitor. Despite being aware of the dire situation, these healthcare providers allegedly took no action to tend to the potential distress of the fetus and ignored the amount of blood being expelled from the plaintiff’s vagina.

Instead, these medical practitioners allegedly allowed the fetal heart monitoring for an additional 15 minutes before finally coming to the decision to perform an emergency C-section. This procedure reportedly took another 11 minutes. When the infant was finally birthed, the baby was reportedly born with permanent brain damage, which will affect her for the rest of her life. This entire birth injury experience has been devastating to the plaintiff, as her daughter will reportedly need constant medical care, and her employment options have been permanently compromised. She will need to constantly care for her daughter due to these disabilities, and will allegedly not be able to maintain full-time work.

The plaintiff is suing the hospital and its staff for the allegedly negligent actions taken on her and her daughter’s behalf, which she alleges directly caused the brain damage to occur. Due to the prolonged labor, her daughter had been deprived of oxygen, which will most likely result in permanent development challenges. The plaintiff is suing for all past and future damages incurred by this birth injury, alleging negligence and medical malpractice.

Specialized class action lawyers encourage parents who believe their children are the victims of malpractice birth injuries to file legal action against the hospitals and other medical staff that may have attributed to the injury. Due to the fact that these birth injuries can result in life-long damage, parents can have a fighting chance to make the best of their situation.

Overview of Birth Injury Consequences

Pregnancy and childbirth are supposed to be joyous occasions of preparing for a new life, and then welcoming it into the world. When that process is made more difficult by negligent actions, or mistakes by doctors that cause more stress, the mother and child are the ones who will bear the brunt of it. In the case of malpractice birth injuries, problems start arising when the labor process is prolonged for longer than necessary, or if no immediate action is taken when the mother reports a problem.

If latent action is taken to deliver the baby, it could result in oxygen deprivation to the baby’s brain that can lead to Down syndrome and other developmental disabilities. Alternatively, if doctors attempt to deliver the baby too early, such as forcing it out with forceps, it could leave physical scarring or accidentally break bones. The two most common birth injuries are cerebral palsy and traumatic brain damage. Both are caused by head injury that occurred during the birthing process.

According to legal experts, hundreds of malpractice birth injury lawsuits are filed each year by families who are seeking compensation for their medical expenses, pain, suffering, and any other damages.