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Parents of a four year old girl recently won $23 million from Presence Saint Joseph Hospital for serious birth injury malpractice, which allegedly caused their daughter permanent brain damage.
According to NBC, the parents allege the hospital’s negligent actions had caused their daughter to develop serious brain damage, which will most likely affect her for the rest of her life.
The parents of the child, Edward W. and Marquita W. state that their daughter cannot talk on some days and cannot use the bathroom on her own. The severe brain damage was allegedly caused by the inaction of the Presence Saint staff when Edward and Marquita arrived at the hospital for their daughter’s birth on Dec. 19. 2014.
According to the birth injury lawsuit, their unborn baby was in distress but was reportedly forced to wait by hospital staff. In addition, the families lawyers allege they were only attended to by residents instead of the on-duty neonatologist.
The lawsuit further stated that fetal monitor strips indicated the baby had been in severe fetal distress and had to be delivered through an immediate C-section. However, the couple claims Marquita suffered a three hour delay and underwent a C-section too late, which caused the baby to be deprived of oxygen too long that resulted in brain damage.
The lawyers for the family stated that if she had been born within three hours, then the birth injuries could have been avoided. Edward and Marquita are planning to use the $23 million award to care for their daughter, and are satisfied with the result.
According to one of the lawyers involved in the trial as reported by PR Newswire, “this verdict is one of the largest malpractice verdicts in Chicago this year” and that justice was finally delivered to the family.
“I am glad that we got our day in court and I am glad that we got a few more answers. Now this is just a means of her having some semblance of a life,” Edward stated.
Even though Edward and Marquita succeeded in their claim, there are numerous other cases like this in the United States.
Overview of Birth Injury Statistics
Birth injury malpractice is a significant problem for new parents in this country. It often happens due to inaction of onstaff medical professionals or general negligence of the hospital in question.
This can cause birth injuries leading to brain trauma, which occur during labor and delivery. Birth injuries are typically caused by oxygen deprivation, excessive pressure to the head or body, infections, and difficult labors.
According to recent statistics, between six to eight out of 1,000 infants born in the United States have suffered birth injuries. This means that approximately one in every 9,714 people in the United States are born with birth injuries, with the some of the most common being: bone fractures, perinatal asphyxia, intracranial hemorrhage and spinal cord injuries.
With the severity of birth injury malpractice, parents should educate themselves about the following areas when determining the cause of their child’s injuries and whether or not medical malpractice may have been a factor.
An experienced birth injury lawyer can also help parents determine if their child’s injuries could have been prevented.
Do YOU have a legal claim? If your child suffered severe birth injuries within the past two years, you may have a legal claim. Fill out the form on this page now for a free, immediate, and confidential case evaluation. The medical malpractice attorneys who work with Top Class Actions will contact you if you qualify to let you know if an individual birth injury lawsuit or class action lawsuit is best for you. [In general, birth injury lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions.] Hurry — statutes of limitations may apply.
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If your child suffered severe birth injuries within the past two years, you may have a legal claim. Submit your information now for a free case evaluation.
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