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Birth Injury Claims

Birth Injury Claims2024-12-30T16:05:50+00:00

A Complete Guide To Birth Injury Claims

Birth injury claims can be initiated if any injury that takes place during the process of childbirth can be termed as a birth injury. A birth injury can be physical damage like a skull fracture, broken bones, or arm or face paralysis. The essential aspect of childbirth is the delivery of a healthy baby after the end of pregnancy. However, unfortunately, this doesn’t always happen.

Sometimes, the medical staff commits unfortunate mishappenings that cause injury to the baby or the mother. These injuries to the infant can still be seen months or years after birth. We will help you walk through the process that is involved in the process of Birth Injury Claims.

There are two types of medical issues an infant can have. They are birth injuries and congenital disabilities. For, birth injury claim, you and your solicitor need to understand the difference between the two.

Birth Injuries

Birth injuries take place during or immediately post the delivery process. It can range from a broken bone, nerve injury or brain damage. Sometimes, birth injuries can be inevitable. However, it can also be a result of negligence from the medical team.

Birth Defects

A congenital disability develops when the baby grows in the mother’s womb and can impact any part of a baby’s body. The defect can be completely natural but can also be caused due to the hospital’s toxins or medications.

Common claims for doctor failure

Common claims for doctor failure range from a failure to refer a patient for tests to a failure to treat a patient when ill. A doctor failure can cause a patient to suffer unnecessary pain and could result in a missed diagnosis.

The claim for doctor failure seeks compensation for the medical negligence and the impact on your life.

Types of claims for doctor failure:

The doctor failure to refer a patient for tests can miss the chance of an early diagnosis and could put the life of the patient in danger.

It may be medical negligence when a doctor does not refer you for a blood test if you show the signs of diabetes. 

The failure to refer a patient with chest pain and shortness of breath for cardiac testing may be medical negligence if the patient has a heart attack.

O’Reilly Doherty & Co. Solicitors can look at your case and see if you have a valid medical negligence claim* for doctor failure.

The doctor failure to treat a patient when showing symptoms can prolong an illness and keep the patient suffering from unnecessary pain and discomfort.

Types of claims for a doctor failure to treat a patient showing symptoms:

  • Failure to treat a patient with an infected wound

  • Failure to treat a patient showing signs of infection

  • Failure to treat a patient by prescribing the correct medication

You may have a medical negligence claim* if the doctor failed to treat you despite you showing symptoms.

The doctor failure to get informed consent can happen at any stage of the medical treatment. Every doctor treating you must inform you fully of the treatment and make sure you understand before getting consent from you.

Types of failure to get informed consent claims:

  • Failure to get informed consent before giving a vaccine
  • Failure to get informed consent before doing any surgery

  • Failure to get informed consent before a physical examination

The doctor may face a medical negligence compensation claim* for failing to obtain informed consent.

Doctor failure to diagnose a medical condition could lead to a delay in treatment and maybe cause a patient to suffer unnecessary pain and have prolonged periods off work and in hospital.

Types of doctor failure to diagnose a medical condition claims:

  • Doctor failure to diagnose a condition by not referring to notes
  • Doctor failure to diagnose due to not following up on tests

  • Doctor failure to diagnose a condition by misreading test results

You may have a doctor failure claim when the GP or hospital doctor fails to diagnose a medical condition.

When the doctor fails to refer a patient to a hospital consultant, they are not using the services available and may be putting a patient in danger of becoming very ill.

The hospital doctor should refer a patient to see a consultant if they are showing the symptoms of a disease when in the A&E department.

The GP should refer a patient to see a consultant when the symptoms of cancer or another condition need further examination.

A doctor should refer you to see a hospital consultant if you are in constant pain and the prescribed medication is not leading to an improvement in health.

O’Reilly Doherty & Co. Solicitors will use their experience in medical negligence to make a successful compensation claim* for a valid doctor failure claim.

Determining the cause of injury to the Baby/Mother

First, you have to determine the cause of the birth injury, that is, if the reason is due to the fault of medical professionals or is it natural (as discussed above). You can do it by examining the kind of injury that the baby has gone through. The injuries faced by a newborn as a result of medical negligence may have different medical complications. Such trauma can cause long term effects on the life of the child.

Here are some of the very common birth injuries:

  • Brain Damage
  • Spinal Cord Injuries
  • Perinatal Asphyxia
  • Seizures
  • Pelvic Injuries During Birth
  • Facial Paralysis
  • Hip Dysplasia
  • Seizures
  • Erb’s Palsy
  • Fracture to Collarbone, Arm, or Skull
  • Untreated Jaundice, Kernicterus, and Hyperbilirubinemia
  • Cerebral Palsy
  • Forceps Tear Injury
  • Forceps and Vacuum Extractor Injuries

Pregnancy Malpractice/Maternal Birth Injury

  • Wrongful Death of the Mother
  • Incorrect Caesarean Section
  • Incontinence
  • Nerve Damage after giving birth
  • Vaginal Tears or Lacerations
  • Pelvic Injuries during Birth
  • Broken Bones
  • Infection
  • Pre-eclampsia or Eclampsia
  • Incorrect Stitching following Caesarean Section
  • Ruptured Uterus
  • Post-traumatic Stress Disorder
  • Injury to Bowel or Bladder
  • Forceps Injury

What is the main cause of birth injury?

Not every birth happens as per the plan. Doctors face various difficulties during delivery. When doctors cannot handle those complexities, the parents and the baby have to bear the consequences. This is the main reason behind birth injury. However, the injury can be completely natural as well due to the medication the mother was on.

How to go about Birth Injury Claims?

Birth injury claims are legal claims that a parent can file on behalf of a child if they have suffered from an injury during or soon after the delivery. It can be a result of medical negligence, but it also can be natural. You need to be careful while making such a claim. Before you start a claim, you should be ready with enough evidence to prove that the injury resulted from the negligence of the medical team. This is where our team can help you.

Primarily, we will provide you with a legal team with expertise in handling birth injury cases and medical malpractice. Based on the situation, the legal time limit for Birth Injury Claim keeps varying. It is paramount to keep in mind that medical negligence cases take a certain time frame in place in which you can bring up your respective claims.

For Birth Injury Claims, the set period is two years less a day following the incident’s date. The period can also be two years less a day following the date one claims the illness/injury was due to medical negligence. If you would like to discuss your case in a private and confidential manner please get in touch with our specialist team today.

If you require any further information, please do not hesitate to call us on 01 8344255. Alternatively you can simply request a callback and a member of our staff will contact you as soon as possible.

*In contentious business, a solicitor may not calculate fees or other charges as a percentage or proportion of any award or settlement.

Case Study:

Birth Injury Claim

We were instructed by a client in relation to a claim against a Maternity Hospital in Dublin. Our client delivered her child naturally. However, the hospital failed to detect that a portion of the placenta was missing.

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