In a relatively small number of cases, babies suffer irreversible brain damage as a result of a serious injury which occurred before, during, or just after birth.
These incidents can be avoided if the appropriate medical care and timely intervention is provided. Both mother and baby should be carefully monitored throughout a pregnancy and during labour as is appropriate to their personal medical history and circumstances.
Leading birth injuries solicitor Diane Rostron explains: “Starting, or growing, a family is a precious and joyous time. For some families however, this can quickly turn into a life changing and profoundly traumatic experience if significant mistakes are made in the medical care provided.
“A failure to carefully monitor both mother and baby, failing to identify issues early and failing to proceed with timely and appropriate medical intervention when required, are sadly common mistakes. For the families affected, the devastation is lifelong.
“Serious injuries that occur just before, during, or just after birth can lead to permanent, and irreversible brain damage. Instead of leaving hospital with a perfectly healthy baby, some families leave with an uncertain future ahead.
“In these devastating circumstances, families have a right to ask the hospital to investigate what
happened. This not only provides those impacted with the much needed answers to help identify what their child’s current and future needs may be, but is also essential for key learnings to prevent repeated incidents.
“All too often however, we hear from families who have tried to gain answers from their hospital following a suspected preventable birth injury, however, fail to receive the answers and resolution needed.
“The lifelong care needs of children who have suffered brain damage at birth are extensive, specialist and costly. We represent and support families through the legal process to gain not only much needed answers about what happened, but also secure the compensation that they are entitled to in order to provide their child with the care required.
“This includes covering the costs of carers to support both the child and the parents who naturally need respite, specialist equipment such as wheelchairs to provide a seriously injured child with the freedom to live as normal a life as possible in the circumstances, and specialist therapies to support both physical and psychological needs.
“Normally with medical negligence incidents there is a three-year time limit to bring a claim however, there is no time limit to bringing a medical negligence claim following significant birth injury.”
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