Every year in the United States, more than 100,000 babies suffer birth injuries. These injuries, and the serious, often permanent consequences of them, include:
- Brain damage
- Bone fractures
- Brachial plexus palsy
- Erb’s palsy
- Cerebral palsy
- Paralysis (permanent or temporary, localized or widespread)
- Group B strep
Brain injuries often come as a complete shock to parents. They wonder, why did this happen, could it have been prevented? While many of these injuries are unavoidable, some are due to the negligence or mistakes of the medical professionals who provided the care. Unfortunately, the delivery team is sometimes uncooperative and reluctant to discuss even the possibility of error, resulting in even greater confusion and suffering for the parents involved.
The fact is, doctors, nurses, anesthesiologists, emergency technicians, midwives and other health care providers are not perfect. They do make mistakes, act recklessly, or make decisions that are impaired by alcohol, drug abuse or lack of sleep. Common mistakes or acts of negligence leading to birth injury include:
- A failure to respond adequately to complications during delivery
- Improper birth techniques
- Oxygen deprivation or failure to correct apnea
- The use of excessive force to remove the baby from the birth canal
- Mishandling a baby’s skull
- The delegation of procedures to unqualified or inexperienced staff
- A failure to identify fetal distress, Rh incompatibility, maternal diabetes, or maternal or fetal infection
- Excessive delay in performing a Cesarean section when the situation calls for it
At Hensley│Chalfant, we have the medical knowledge, experience and mastery of the law to obtain just compensation for damages resulting from birth injuries. We understand the pain, stress and anger experienced by parents of babies injured at birth. We will handle your case compassionately and work tirelessly on your behalf to obtain the compensation you are entitled to.