New York Medical Malpractice Lawyer Blog

The case of a little boy who was born with brain damage as a result of medical negligence has just been settled for $8.5 million. The boy who is five years old still requires ongoing regular medical treatment due to his injuries. The settlement is supposed to cover medical costs as well as any future medical requirements that he will continue to need for the rest of his life.

There was no reason to be concerned about the pregnancy. It was thought to be a normal pregnancy and no extra precautions were taken. Standard preparations were made at the medical center explains the expert. However, at around 9 AM heart monitors around the mothers belly detected a very sharp decrease in the heart rate. Prior to this the heart rate was a very healthy 140 beats per minute. However, this suddenly dropped to just 60 beats per minute.

The nurse who noticed this continued to take more readings, stated the rep. However, she did not raise the alarm for about 30 minutes and instead chose to monitor the condition. After 30 minutes she finally did contact the on call obstetrician. It took around 20 minutes for him to arrive.

The doctor explains that the obstetrician did not take the lady straight in for the emergency C-section. Instead he continued to wait until around 11 AM. The actual C-section was very easy and it only took 4 minutes to take the baby out. The prosecution argues that if the C-section was performed earlier that the baby would not of suffered serious brain damage.

An expert witness who practices in The Bronx and Brooklyn was called to give evidence at the trial. The expert said that the injuries which have affected the child's whole life were avoidable. It's suspected that the low heart rate was caused by an obstructed umbilical cord. This restricted the amount of oxygen available which left the baby suffering from brain damage. The child still suffers from seizures, and is unable to see or walk unless he is assisted.

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When this medical malpractice case first went to trial, the doctor was found negligence and the jury awarded $1,500,000, a low amount considering the nature of the birth injuries and the fact the child could never be left alone for the rest of its life. The damage award was based on a 47% negligence ratio assessed against the defendant doctor.

The case was appealed on the grounds that the damages were far too low given the egregious nature of the doctor’s actions, explained the source. The Appellate court agreed that the damages were far too low and directed a new trial to deal with damages only. They had no problem ordering a new trial, as there was ample evidence on record that indicated the residents at the hospital and the on call physician, who subsequently died, were negligent.

The on call physician didn’t supervise any of the treatment provided to the mother in this case and his lack of oversight resulted in severe brain damage to the baby. In other words, there was a direct link between the doctor’s negligence and the baby’s brain damage – referred to as proximate cause.

The Appellate court further found that the initial damage award was too low considering what would be reasonable compensation in light of the severe nature of the baby’s permanent brain damage, said the court. The other argument advanced was that the jury award was low due to juror confusion and ambiguity. The court did not see this as being a valid reason to hand out a low amount when the issue could have been addressed at the lower court level. A similar decision would have been handed down in The Bronx and Westchester County.

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Birth injuries may happen either before, during or just after birth and typically tend to involve oxygen deprivation to the child’s brain. These kinds of birth injuries are usually referred to as hypoxic brain injuries and in most cases, the child’s life will never be normal. Depending on how severe the birth injury is, the child may require medical care for the rest of their lives and never know what living a normal life means, explained the source.

The parents in this case were expecting a normal delivery and weren’t anticipating any difficulties with their baby. They trusted their doctor to do the right thing. Unfortunately, while the doctor was trying to do the right thing, he made three egregious errors that forever changed the baby’s life. He burst the membranes in her head, didn’t resuscitate her properly and didn’t immediately order a C-section.

As a direct result of this doctor’s errors, the baby sustained a hypoxic brain injury and for the rest of her life she and her parents will deal with her inability to hear properly, her learning disabilities and her cerebral palsy, indicated the observer.

For anyone who suspects that their baby has sustained birth injuries, it’s advisable to contact a competent expert and find out what a med mal case involved. They are complicated, convoluted and take a fair length of time to settle or go to court. This is why time is of the essence in speaking to a knowledgeable med mal lawyer right away. If you don’t get your claim filed prior to the Statute of Limitations deadlines, then you will be barred from seeking compensation. This is also true in places like The Bronx and Brooklyn.

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Legal payments may be blocked in one state’s birth-injury program; a saving for the state, but potential anguish for the parents who will be unable to sue for med mal, said a New York Medical Malpractice Lawyer.
In a case that made headlines, a state commission reversed an earlier decision to allow the birth-injury program to pay defense lawyers who were seeking to have a dead child accepted into the program. Evidently, a child who had died shortly after birth, under the care of a local obstetrician, was deemed qualified for benefits under the birth-injury program. Parents in The Bronx and Queens could claim up to $100,000 from the program. However, the fact that the child qualified, meant that a separate medical malpractice lawsuit against the obstetrician for millions was ended.
The state’s attorney general pointed out that program funding was not to be used to pay lawyers who were trying to avoid exposure to med mal lawsuits for their clients. In other words, the eligibility issue was not to protect the interests of the dead child, but to ensure the negligence doctor was not sued for medical malpractice, explained the Doctor.
In a nutshell, defense lawyers are being told that they have no business seeking compensation from the program. Although the malpractice lawsuit for birth injuries was barred because of the child’s admission to the birth-injury program, this will not stop any malpractice action for injuries incurred by the mother at birth, added the NYC Medical Malpractice Lawyer.

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