How to File and Win a Medical Malpractice Case Involving Childbirth

There is joy to be had when a family introduces a new member to the household. Childbirth is a beautiful process despite the hardship that the mother has to endure.

Fortunately, modern medical science has helped to improve conditions to ensure safer deliveries.

High levels of precaution are undertaken, and medical staff are trained to protect both the child and the mother from anything that could go wrong.

However, there are situations where accidents and injuries occur. For the most part, such risks are all too preventable.

While medical staff are tasked to follow protocols and best practices, cases of medical malpractice may still occur during childbirth, endangering the life of both the child and the mother or causing a lifetime of hardship.

For this, families reserve the right to recover from their losses by filing a medical malpractice claim and demanding accountability from the attending physician as well as the institution that oversaw the botched procedure.

If this happens to you or another individual close to you who is still suffering from the physical and emotional effects of a childbirth gone wrong, here’s your guide to taking the right legal steps. 

1. Understand what constitutes medical malpractice

Before you can proceed to build a case against the responsible parties, you need to know how medical malpractice works and find out what legal grounds exist to initiate legal action.

For the most part, malpractice involves a breach of a doctor’s or institution’s duty of care. If the procedure is assisted by a medical professional, they assume the critical responsibility of making the procedure safe for you and the baby.

Doing so would mean using the right techniques and monitoring your and your baby’s condition throughout the process.

Birth injuries and permanent conditions on the part of the infant are usually caused by negligence and a failure to use medical equipment safely, especially during a C-section procedure.

Doctors are also tasked to prevent lifelong conditions such as Periventricular Leukomalacia, which often happens in infants who have experienced brain injuries during birth.

You need to establish that the persons involved in delivering your baby have breached their duty of care, for which you can file a claim for malpractice.

2. Gather and document all necessary evidence

As you establish the case that your birth injuries were caused by a doctor’s negligence, you need to build a strong case showing that they failed to follow standard procedures during delivery.

Evidence is the cornerstone of a successful malpractice case, so you must document everything that has to do with the botched procedure.

This would mean gathering results from prior tests establishing that you were in good condition at the time of childbirth. It’s also crucial to gather testimonies from people who were present in the delivery room.

In most cases, you’re more likely to win a malpractice suit if you obtain expert opinions from other medical professionals.

A second opinion from pediatric neurologists and obstetricians is crucial in helping you understand the extent of your injuries and confirm that these and other conditions were caused by a failure to follow standard procedures. 

3. Get legal help and follow the right routes

It’s never wise to assume that, since you have strong evidence against the medical professionals who oversaw the delivery, a large compensation package is guaranteed.

For the most part, the other side may try to absolve themselves of any wrongdoing and may insist on paying an amount that’s unfairly less than the financial and emotional costs of your suffering.

Getting a seasoned medical malpractice lawyer specializing in childbirth can help you win justice for yourself and your baby.

Through your lawyer, you will be able to strengthen your claim using other types of evidence, establishing the severity of your injuries and justifying an amount that’s more than enough to help you recover and move on from this traumatic period in your life.

They may also advise against accepting a settlement amount that falls short of your actual losses, including lost wages and a lifetime of treatment and medication.

Whatever happens throughout the process, you can trust your lawyer to advocate for your and your child’s future. 

Endnote

Birth injuries and other forms of complications should never happen in the first place if doctors do their jobs in line with established standards.

When they fall short of these standards, you have the legal means above to get compensated for what could be a lifetime of suffering.