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The birth of a child should be a joyous event in a parent’s life. When acts of medical negligence cause birth injuries, that joy is quickly replaced by worry, stress, and heartache.
Negligent care during the delivery of a newborn can cause long-lasting medical complications, affecting your child’s quality of life and draining your finances. An experienced medical malpractice attorney cannot undo the medical error, but they can pursue the compensation you need to care for your family. A Harrisburg birth injury lawyer from Lowenthal & Abrams can help you hold negligent parties responsible and get the financial support you deserve.
How Medical Negligence Causes Birth Injuries
Injuries resulting from medical negligence are preventable and occur when a medical professional disregards the standards of care for their field as described in 1996 Act 135 § 821A(b). Ways negligence can lead to birth injuries include, but are not limited to:
- Injuries to the baby in the form of:
- Broken bones
- Asphyxia, which can cause brain damage and organ failure
- Spinal cord damage, which can cause full or partial paralysis
- Chronic illness
- Malformed physical characteristics
- Injuries to the mother in the form of:
- Reproductive organ ruptures
- Hemorrhaging, which can cause embolism and organ failure
- Abnormal vaginal tearing
While these conditions and injuries can occur naturally during the complex process of fetal growth and the unavoidable mechanics of giving birth, medical providers can negligently cause harm by:
- Failing to identify or properly treat maternal health complications like diabetes, infection, and preeclampsia
- Unnecessarily forceful delivery methods, including aggressively using forceps and suction
- Improperly monitoring maternal and fetal vitals, preventing their ability to recognize and remedy medical distress
- Not performing medically necessary care, such as emergency caesarian sections
A Harrisburg attorney can identify whether a particular birth injury meets the criteria for a negligence claim.
Pursuing Compensation After a Birth Injury
In Pennsylvania, medical negligence claims are not subject to a cap on economic damages. That means an injured person or their representative family member can claim all actual costs related to an injury, including current medical bills as well as anticipated future costs. The state also does not place a cap on noneconomic damages such as emotional distress, pain, and suffering.
To prove a birth injury resulted from medical negligence, a patient and their Harrisburg attorney must prove the medical provider caused harm by deviating from the profession’s standard of care. Under 2002 Act 13 § 504(b), an expert’s testimony is necessary to show this deviation occurred and was the cause of a birth injury.
Injured parties generally have two years from the date of the injury to file a medical malpractice lawsuit in Pennsylvania, per 42 Pa. Code 42 § 5524(2). This time may be extended if the injury is not discovered until a later date. A compassionate lawyer can guide a family from start to finish of their legal proceedings over a birth injury.
Call a Harrisburg Birth Injury Attorney for Legal Support
Few things are as traumatic for a parent as witnessing their children experience unjust and preventable harm. Birth injuries can cause your child expensive life-long complications, which are not costs the family should bear alone. A Harrisburg birth injury attorney can help you during this emotional time by fighting on your behalf for the compensation your child deserves. Call Lowenthal & Abrams, Injury Attorneys now.
