New parents have a challenging adjustment ahead. In cases where a child has a significant birth injury, such as cerebral palsy, the adjustment process can become infinitely more challenging for a family. Parents worried about career setbacks, medical costs and other challenges related to a significant birth injury may hope to hold outside parties accountable for their future expenses. Medical malpractice lawsuits frequently follow a child’s diagnosis of cerebral palsy.
Medical professionals can often defend against malpractice claims by showing that the issues developed during pregnancy and not due to mistakes during labor.
Cerebral palsy often begins in utero
Delivery room errors are not the only cause of cerebral palsy. Blunt-force trauma to a pregnant woman’s abdomen or compression of an umbilical cord can potentially cause damage to the developing brain of the unborn baby.
In some cases, it may be possible to conduct in-depth testing, such as imaging exams, to validate the claim that the cerebral palsy began well before the woman went into labor. Other times, health care professionals can potentially use documentation from the labor and delivery process to show that they adhered to current best standards and that no egregious oversights occurred.
Without proof of significant deviations from best practices, the claim of medical malpractice may not be legally viable. Health care professionals and hospital managers responding to medical malpractice lawsuits after a cerebral palsy diagnosis may be able to avoid a costly settlement and the professional challenges that could follow a substantiated or settled birth injury lawsuit.
Reviewing the severity of the child’s condition, the interventions provided during labor and even medical records from during the pregnancy with a skilled legal team could all help validate that doctors did not cause a child’s condition. With the right strategy, health care professionals can potentially defend successfully against malpractice allegations that could otherwise cause serious damage.
