It is often underestimated how life-changing giving birth is and what can happen if something goes wrong during its process. As much of a positive event giving birth can be to those impatiently waiting for the baby to be born, it is undoubtedly a very risky procedure that must be treated carefully to avoid any life-threatening health issues for the mother and the baby.
We cannot deny how difficult it is for doctors and nurses to ensure that the mother and baby are safe when the child is being born and after the delivery process. However, in many instances birth injuries can happen due to a consequence of malpractice which could affect the child and the parent for the rest of their lives. When this is the case, the child and the parent may be able to submit a birth injury claim for compensation.
What Is Birth Injury Negligence
In simple terms, Birth Injury Negligence can be considered as any type of harm inflicted to the infant or mother during labour and birth. Although it could happen in many ways, a birth injury could start off as something harmless such as bruising or swelling – which occurs regularly during the process of giving birth. Nevertheless, if left untreated because of the doctor’s or nurse’s carelessness, this could develop to severe birth injuries and potentially lead to a devastating impact on the mother and the baby.
Negligence ca n include anything from a substandard level of care being provided during pregnancy, to failure to detect and treat complications, to incorrect intervention being made during labour, all of which can result in avoidable damage being caused to mother and/or baby. Due to these errors, you or your child can be left suffering with a wide variety of complications during childbirth or in the aftercare period, some of which may be temporary, but many of which can last a lifetime.
What Is Considered As Birth Injury Negligence
Birth Injuries to Mothers:
– C-section injuries
– Perineal tears
– Inadequate stitching
– Epidural birth injuries
– Failure to manage pre-eclampsia
– Failure to recognise when a baby has stopped growing
Birth Injuries to Babies:
– Erb’s Palsy
– Cerebral Palsy
– Paralysis or partial paralysis
– Brain damage
– Spine injuries
– Bone fractures
– Hypoxia
– Death/stillbirth
– Fractures
Birth Injury Statistics
According to the most recent research About 30,000 women a year experience birth trauma in the UK. It has also been reported that 1% of births result in successful medical negligence claims, that still means that around 500 mums and babies are the subject victim of unnecessary medical negligence every year. The catastrophic effects of birth injuries require a high level of attention and care which is something we are here to offer and ensure you are compensated accordingly
Difference Between Birth Injury and Defect
Birth defects occur naturally in the womb as the baby develops. These can be due to several factors, including genetic mutations or being exposed to toxins or medications ingested by the mother. In either case, it is possible a third party may have caused the damage.
How Do I Know I Have A Valid Claim?
In many circumstances, the illness may not be detected right away as it may take, days, weeks, months or even years at times. After the child is born, if the mother was injured, she has the right to file a claim on her own behalf and they can also file a claim for the child from when they were born until the child reaches the after of 18 (If they were affected). If any of the injuries listed previously are what you or your child are experiencing, you are more likely to be eligible.
How Long Do You Have Until Making A Claim?
The time limit for making a medical negligence claim is typically three years from the date of the negligent incident, with a few exceptions. In other words, your case must be brought within three years of the negligence happening or your ‘date of knowledge’ that something was not right.
However, if you are making the claim on behalf of a child who has suffered injury due to negligence, you can claim at any point until they are 18 years old. After that, they can make a claim for themselves, but they have only three years to do so (by the time they turn 21). If you are making a claim for a child who has passed away because of a birth injury, you have three years from the date of death to make a claim.
Why Choose UKExpertMedical?
If you’re a solicitor looking for support on a Medical Negligence Reports, our experts have over 10 years’ experience in providing the reports you need for your case. Our team is committed to sourcing the best medical negligence experts with the right experience to produce the most accurate Medico-Legal reports possible for you and your client. If you’d like us to carry out your medico-legal reports for Medical Negligence, get in touch with our team today.
Making A Birth Injury Claim
If you’d like to make a claim for Birth Injury claims, you can do so on our partner website. The first step would be to get in touch so they can determine whether they can proceed with your claim. All claims are no win, no fee.
