According to a recent report, the United States is the most dangerous developed country where you can give birth. Statistics indicate over 50,000 mothers suffer significant injuries while or after they’ve giving birth and approximately 700 mothers die. The report also claims that health care providers in the country have a disturbing lack of attention regarding safety recommendations and protection for new mothers.
But how do you differentiate a birth injury due to natural complications from one that’s the result of a preventable medical error?
Characteristics of Medical Malpractice
Attorneys specializing in wrongful deaths and birth injuries determine the viability of a medical malpractice case by determining if it meets the following characteristics:
- There must be a violation of standard care procedures. Medical professionals must abide by legally acknowledged and professionally accepted treatments, also known as the standard of care. As a patient, your loved one has the right to receive this level of treatment consistently from their medical providers. Determining if this standard was upheld is the first step to establishing the presence of medical malpractice.
- Negligence should have led to an injury. Valid medical malpractice claims should also prove that there was negligence as well as the violation of standard care led to an injury that wouldn’t have happened otherwise. A negative outcome of the procedure isn’t enough justification for malpractice. It must be proven that negligence caused damage.
- There must be significant damages. Because of the time-consuming and expensive nature of medical malpractice cases, the injury inflicted by the medical professional’s violation of standard care and negligence should be suitably significant. This usually means that the injury led to a considerable loss of income, inordinate levels of pain and suffering, disability, or death.
Once these characteristics have been established, your medical malpractice claim is viable and can proceed to court.
Common Birth Related Medical Mistakes
The following are the most common types of medical mistakes associated with birth complications and injuries.
- Misdiagnosis: This refers to instances when medical professionals fail to accurately diagnose a pregnant woman’s state of health. They could be unaware that someone has a complicated pregnancy, they could misdiagnose underlying medical conditions, or even fail to diagnose that someone is pregnant.
- Surgical Errors: These are instances when a medical professional commits a mistake during the birthing or afterward. These could include errors that injure the baby and the mother, such as excessive pressure during labor, leaving behind surgical clips inside the mother during C-sections, or improper birthing technique leading to injured limbs.
- Medication Errors: Aside from prescribing improper medication or making an error on the correct dosage, these mistakes include anesthesia-related incidents, which may be fatal to the mother.
- Nursing Errors: These errors cover a lot of incidents, from causing infection to causing injuries from mishandling equipment. However, this also includes documentation errors, like misfiled paperwork that could lead to injuries or even death.
Births should be celebrations of life, not occasions of misery. With the right legal representation, you can receive justice for any loss of life or injury from medical mishaps during childbirth.
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