The pain of parents feel seeing their child suffering is unlike any other pain in life. This is definitely the case when the child suffering is still a baby. The injuries babies can suffer during the labor and birthing process can be devastating, both to the infant and to his or her parents. If your baby has sustained this type of injury, you certainly want to give your child the best medical care possible, but the cost of that medical care may be way beyond your present ability to pay.
At Magna Law Firm, we are here to help you secure the compensation you deserve for a birth injury your little one has sustained due to medical negligence. This compensation can cover the past and future medical expenses of caring for your child’s injuries, and much more.
What is a Birth Injury?
A birth injury is an injury to the infant which occurs while the mother is in labor or in the process of delivering the child. Birth injuries are often caused by medical negligence and very preventable. Certain actions/inactions and practices that can cause birth injuries include:
- Improper use of tools that assist in the birthing process, such as vacuum extraction and forceps
- Failing to schedule and perform an emergency C-section when needed
- Handling, twisting, or pulling on the infant improperly during the birthing process
- Failing to diagnose and address medical conditions of the mother
- Failing to monitor the infant’s heartbeat and any distress symptoms
- Providing improper medications or dosage of medications (such as Pitocin or Cytotec) to the mother during pregnancy and/or labor
Proving a Birth Injury
Establishing a birth injury claim in Minnesota general involves obtaining expert witness testimony which defines the standard of care and how the medical professionals fell short of that standard. Any lawsuit in Minnesota that claims medical malpractice, including that resulting in birth injury, must be upheld by a “Certification of Expert Review” to be filed with the complaint, per Minnesota Statute 145.682.
However, if the actions or lack of actions involved that resulted in the birth injury are understandable by laypeople without expert medical knowledge, then it is not necessary to obtain expert testimony in order to define the standard of care.
In order to prove a birth injury case in Minnesota, your attorney must prove:
- The recognized standard care within the local medical community applies to the conduct of the defendant
- The defendant fell short of that standard
- The defendant’s failure to meet that standard directly led to the infant’s birth injury
- Damages sustained by the plaintiff
If your baby was injured during labor or delivery through the medical negligence of willful wrongdoing, a birth injury from our team at Magna Law Firm is ready to help you recover the compensation you deserve. Give us a call today at 763.438.3032 or complete our contact form to arrange a free consultation.
